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OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee made a stunning claim on Friday, saying they have found evidence of a “direct payment” to Joe Biden that reeks of “classic money laundering.”
Committee chair James Comer (R-Ky.) posted a redacted copy of a $200,000 check from the president’s brother, James, to Joe that was written on the very same day that James obtained a loan in the same amount from a financially troubled hospital chain.
Comer explained in a video posted to social media the importance and significance of the “direct payment” to then-former Vice President Biden, who was still head of a family with a famous and well-connected political name that could “open doors” for those seeking to influence federal government policy.
Republicans are continuing their investigations into the first family in the background as the drama to select another House Speaker plays out publicly.
“In 2018, James Biden received $600,000 in loans from Americore—a financially distressed and failing rural hospital operator. According to bankruptcy court documents, James Biden received these loans “based upon representations that his last name, ‘Biden,’ could ‘open doors’ and that he could obtain a large investment from the Middle East based on his political connections,” the Oversight boss said in a statement on the committee’s website.
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— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) October 20, 2023
“On March 1, 2018, Americore wired a $200,000 loan into James and Sara Biden’s personal bank account – not their business bank account. On the same day, James Biden wrote a $200,000 check from this same personal bank account to Joe Biden,” the statement continued.
During a Friday appearance on Fox Business Network, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a member of the Oversight Committee, told host Larry Kudlow the payment looks like a “classic case of money laundering.”
“Were you surprised that half or more of the speech was about Ukraine?” Kudlow asked in reference to Biden’s Oval Office address Thursday evening, where he requested a disproportionate amount of money he wants to send Ukraine versus helping Israel in its war against Hamas.
“No, I’m not surprised at all, Larry, because we all know exactly why Joe Biden is so obsessed with Ukraine,” Greene responded. “He and his family made a lot of money on their corrupt business deals from countries like Ukraine, the Middle East, and China, and many more. And we just got evidence of that today that we’ve put out.”
After holding up a copy of the check, Greene declared, “This is a copy of the check that Joe Biden’s brother, James Biden, wrote to him, and this is a classic example of money laundering.”
“Even if this was a personal loan repayment, it’s still troubling that Joe Biden’s ability to be paid back by his brother depended on the success of his family’s shady financial dealings,” Comer added in the statement. “The House Oversight Committee will soon announce our next investigative actions and continue to follow the money. The bank records don’t end here. There is more to come.”
“This summer, Joe Biden said: ‘Where’s the money?’” Comer said in a Friday statement, The Epoch Times reported. “Well, we found some.”
“Even if this was a personal loan repayment, it’s still troubling that Joe Biden’s ability to be paid back by his brother depended on the success of his family’s shady financial dealings,” he added. “Did he have similar financial arrangements with other family members that led them to make similar large payments to him?”
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He called on the president to release the terms of the loan arrangement if, in fact, that’s what it was.
White House spokesperson Ian Sams pushed back on the revelation, however.
“It’s no coincidence they rushed out a new distraction mere minutes after yet another failed Speaker vote,” he said, alluding to a failed third vote for Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) on Friday.
