In a latest move in the ongoing Biden impeachment inquiry, Republicans have submitted a demand letter to White House Counsel Edward Siskel, urging the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to provide all original drafts of then-Vice President Joe Biden’s speech regarding the firing of Burisma Holdings’ prosecutor Viktor Shokin.
The inquiry’s interest in the initial drafts stems from Joe Biden’s 2018 claim of successfully influencing Shokin’s removal—a pivotal condition for Ukraine to secure a crucial $1 billion loan guarantee, as explained by Biden himself. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) initiated the request for the original drafts over five months ago, but the White House has consistently prevented NARA from releasing them to Congress.
During the Obama administration, Joe Biden served as the designated foreign policy figure for Ukraine. The House Oversight Committee asserts that Biden, in 2015, allegedly threatened to withhold U.S. aid to Ukraine unless then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko ousted Shokin, who held jurisdiction over an investigation into the Ukrainian energy company Burisma.
Of note, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s son, was a board member of Burisma, earning $1 million annually. His monthly compensation was reduced by half two months after Joe Biden ceased to be vice president.
The inquiry wrote to the White House, citing the administration’s prior approval for NARA to furnish Congress with presidential records linked to the Trump Administration after just one month of review. The inquiry insists on the same expeditious process in this instance.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the prolonged delay, the inquiry accuses the White House of attempting to obstruct a legitimate investigation. The letter expressed the need for an immediate release of these documents and calls for an end to what it deems “dilatory tactics.”
via madpatriotnews