FLASHBACK: Biden said people who defy Jan. 6 Committee subpoenas should be held ‘criminally’ accountable
A newly resurfaced video clip shows President Biden saying in 2021 that those who defy the January 6 Committee’s congressional subpoenas should be held “criminally” accountable. Biden made the comments in October 2021 on the White House lawn while being questioned by reporters. “Do you have a message to people who defy congressional subpoenas on the January 6 Committee?” a reporter asked Biden. “I hope that the committee goes after them and holds them accountable criminally,” the president responded at the time. A little more than two years after those comments, Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, is facing the full fury of congressional Republicans after he skipped a deposition on his nine-count indictment involving tax evasion. WATCH: WHITE HOUSE SAYS BIDEN ‘PROUD’ OF HUNTER DESPITE MOUNTING LEGAL ISSUES, SUBPOENA DEFIANCE Republicans on the House Oversight Committee took to social media pushing back against Hunter’s “stunt,” demanding the president’s son be held in contempt of Congress. Other critics also pointed to the claims concerning his father’s relationship with his business dealings as “goalpost shifting,” but Hunter claimed his father was never “financially involved” in his business dealings. HUNTER BIDEN FACES BACKLASH AFTER DEFYING SUBPOENA WITH PRESS CONFERENCE ‘STUNT’: ‘HOLD HIM IN CONTEMPT!’ On Wednesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that President Biden and first lady Jill Biden were “proud” of their son, Hunter. President Biden also dodged reporters’ questions this week on whether Hunter defied the subpoena. If convicted, Hunter faces a maximum penalty of 17 years in prison. The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Maryland Gov. Moore calls Orioles lease deal ‘imminent’
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said Wednesday that he believes a new lease agreement with the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards is “imminent,” as an end-of-the year deadline approaches. Moore spoke to reporters after a meeting of the state’s Board of Public Works, which would need to approve a final deal. The governor spoke about the negotiations after his administration announced Friday that it would address concerns expressed by the state Senate president about a proposed agreement. “We’ve been working all throughout the weekend and the week with all the partners, and we feel very confident that a deal is imminent,” said Moore, who chairs the three-member board. ORIOLES’ BRANDON HYDE, MARLINS’ SKIP SCHUMAKER NAMED MLB MANAGERS OF THE YEAR It was the board’s last scheduled meeting this year, though Moore emphasized that it was the last regularly scheduled meeting, suggesting another one could be called to approve a new lease before the end of the year. “We have to do, and we’re going to do, the best deal for the taxpayers,” Moore said. “We’re going to make sure that this is a long-term deal. We’re not doing a one-year, we’re not doing a short-term deal. We are going to make sure that we are being good stewards of taxpayer dollars, and we have to make sure we’re creating winners, not just on the field but also winners off the field.” Maryland Treasurer Dereck Davis, a board member who expressed concerns about “foot-dragging” in the negotiations in July, said he was confident an agreement will be reached before the end of the year. “I believe that we’ll have a resolution real soon,” Davis said Wednesday. The Orioles’ lease at Camden Yards expires at the end of the year. In September, the team dramatically announced a new 30-year deal to stay at the ballpark — a message to that effect appeared on the scoreboard in the middle of a game the night the team clinched the AL East. The next day, the governor’s office released details of a memorandum of understanding involving Moore, the team and the Maryland Stadium Authority. WISCONSIN GOV. EVERS APPROVES HALF-BILLION DOLLAR BREWERS STADIUM OVERHAUL The September agreement included a 99-year development rights agreement for areas surrounding the ballpark, including the warehouse and Camden Station. That was a sticking point for Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, whose district includes the stadium. “Fundamentally, I believe that the long-term lease for the use of the ballpark should not be conditioned on whether or not a private owner receives a 99-year ground lease to develop land owned by Maryland taxpayers,” Ferguson said in a statement Friday. “This is more relevant today, as recent news has heightened uncertainties about the future ownership of the team.” Bloomberg reported last week, citing unidentified sources, that Carlyle Group Inc. co-founder David Rubenstein has been in talks to acquire the Orioles. Last year, the state increased bond authorization for M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens, and Camden Yards. The measure allowed borrowing of up to $600 million for each stadium.
Former Obama adviser David Axelrod says poll showing Biden at record low approval is ‘very, very dark’
Former President Obama Senior Adviser David Axelrod commented on a recent Wall Street Journal poll that puts President Joe Biden’s approval figures at a record low, saying it is “very, very dark” for his re-election campaign. Axelrod made the comments during the “Hacks on Tap” podcast Saturday alongside political consultant Mike Murphy and former Obama White House press secretary Robert Gibbs. The Wall Street Journal poll Axelrod was discussing has former President Trump leading Biden 47% to 43% in a hypothetical with two people on the ballot. Trump leads 37% to 31% in a hypothetical ballot with five independent candidates also listed. Biden’s job approval only hit 37%, a new record low for the WSJ poll, and 61% of those who responded see the president’s overall image in a negative light. POLL SHOWS BIDEN HITTING RECORD LOW APPROVALS, FALLING BEHIND AGAINST TRUMP IN 2024 MATCHUP “Job approval down, ratings generally down, most of the comparatives with Trump not good,” Axelrod said on the podcast. “What I worry about, you guys, from a Biden standpoint, is these are the kinds of things you get when people are starting to rationalize their votes.” “And they just put out another photo op with the Bidenomics sign next to him…it’s just unbelievable to me,” he added. DEMOCRATIC ANALYSTS SOUND ALARM ON MORE ‘GRIM’ BIDEN POLLING SHOWING DIMINISHING SUPPORT IN KEY VOTER GROUPS On most issues such as the economy, border security, and inflation, respondents to the poll sided with Trump. Only on the issue of abortion did Biden beat Trump. The Wall Street Journal poll surveyed 1,500 registered voters between Nov. 29 and Dec. 4, with a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percentage points. Fox News Digital’s Michael Lee and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Republicans see progress in border talks, but unclear if deal within reach as crisis rages
Senate Republicans say they are seeing progress in talks on potential border policy changes to be included in a supplemental spending package requested by the White House, although it isn’t clear if a deal is possible. Talks have been ongoing between Senate lawmakers and the administration over a supplemental funding request that includes border funding as well as aid for Israel and Ukraine. But Republicans and Democrats have found sharp disagreement on the contents of the border funding section, with Republicans demanding stricter limits on initial asylum screenings and the use of parole. House Republican leadership has called for the inclusion of a broader package passed in the chamber earlier this year, but Senate Republicans have shown openness to a more limited package. MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AGAIN TOP 10K IN SINGLE DAY AS LAWMAKERS EYE NEW BORDER LIMITS President Biden said last week that he was open to “significant compromises,” and CBS News reported Tuesday that the Biden administration is open to a new Title 42-style authority, which was the COVID-era order that allowed for the rapid expulsion of migrants at the southern border until May this year. The administration was reportedly also open to a nationwide expansion of expedited removal, which allows for recently entered migrants to be quickly removed if they do not meet the initial asylum standard. It is currently only being used at and near the border. CBS reported that the White House was willing to mandate the detention of certain migrants as their claims are considered. While that report has sparked anger from left-wing Democrats, Republicans have responded positively, if cautiously. “It’s a start, but I think the most important thing is the White House has finally gotten engaged, and it’s taken a long time to get there, but they finally did on Monday,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told reporters. “But unfortunately, we’re so late in the year and with so little time left, it’s not practical to conclude between now and the end of the year.” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said he is open to the idea of having something like the Title 42 authority, citing the large number of migrant encounters at the southern border, and said that lawmakers should stay in Washington until a deal can be hammered out. Lawmakers are scheduled to leave D.C. for their winter break on Thursday. “I’m going to take it as a good-faith offer, which is why I think we have to act in good faith and stay here until we get it negotiated out,” he said. 5,000 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED EVERY DAY INTO US, ADMIN OFFICIALS PRIVATELY TELL LAWMAKERS Multiple lawmakers told reporters that there was nothing yet in writing from the White House and that the key would be in the details. “We’ve been back and forth this morning, and we’ll continue to be able to work through. And again, yesterday was positive and we made a lot of progress on it to be able to go through it, and we’ll just keep working,” said Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said that it was “good news” that the White House was involved in talks. “Whether we can land this plane, I don’t know,” he said. However, even if a package can be agreed to in the upper chamber, it is unclear if the agreement would gain the assent of the House, which has been eyeing more expansive moves. Meanwhile, Democrats in both the House and the Senate took aim at the reported proposals, blasting the Biden administration for what they see as a return to Trump-era policies. “It is truly shameful that President Biden and his administration are considering selling out migrants and asylum seekers in order placate extreme Republicans who are jeopardizing our national security and that of our allies just to score a political point,” Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said in a statement. Meanwhile, Fox News reported that Tuesday saw another day in which overwhelmed officials at the border encountered more than 10,000 migrants in a single day. Fox News’ Tyler Olson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Pennsylvania Senate clears way for spending on school choice, student-teacher stipends
Pennsylvania’s state Senate moved past a longstanding budget feud Wednesday and approved school-funding legislation that would send millions more to subsidize private school tuition and create a student-teacher stipend to try to stem a shortage of teachers. In addition to subsidies for private schools and student teachers, it also ties up some loose ends from a nearly five-month-old dispute over elements of the state’s spending plan for the 2023-24 fiscal year. The bill passed the Republican-controlled Senate, 43-7, and goes to the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives. PENNSYLVANIA POISED TO ALLOW LONGER SCHOOL DAYS, SHORTER WEEKS Those include allowing more than $300 million to flow to libraries and community colleges, as well as $100 million in federal aid to flow to school mental health services and $75 million to clean up lead, asbestos, mold and other environmental health hazards in school buildings. Previous versions of the bill had stalled, until Democrats dropped a provision that Republicans opposed to send another $100 million to the poorest public schools. Under the bill, the state will expand a tax credit program by $130 million — from $340 million to $470 million — that allows businesses to receive tax breaks in exchange for donating money to defray the cost of tuition at private and religious schools. Public school advocates have criticized the program as discriminatory, saying many of the eligible schools cherry-pick the students they want to teach and have policies that discriminate on the basis of religion, LGBTQ+ status, disability or another reason. PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL CHOICE PROGRAM SLAMMED BY CRITICS CALLING FOR BOOST IN PUBLIC EDUCATION FUNDING The tax credit program is championed primarily by Republicans, who agreed to concessions sought by Democrats. Those include scaling back the amount of money that middleman administrators can keep — from 20% down to 10% — and requiring the disclosure of more demographic information about the students who benefit. The bill also boosts the amount of tax credits from $12 million to $60 million for donations that go to private schools that serve a larger proportion of students from lower-income families. To encourage more college students to become teachers, the bill would create a program to give a stipend of up to $15,000 to student teachers. With numerous schools having difficulty hiring or retaining teachers, the stipends are aimed at easing a hardship for college students finishing up a teaching degree who each must student-teach in schools for 12 weeks without pay.
House votes to authorize Biden impeachment inquiry
The House has voted to formalize its impeachment inquiry into President Biden on Wednesday, taking a critical step that GOP leaders have argued is necessary to force the White House into complying with their investigation. The measure passed 221 to 212, with every Republican voting in favor of it and all present Democrats voting against. Light cheering could be heard on the GOP side of the chamber after the measure passed, with pin drop silence on the Democratic side. “We are now at a pivotal moment in our investigation. We will soon depose and interview several members of the Biden family and their associates about these influence peddling schemes. But we are facing obstruction from the White House,” Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said on the House floor ahead of the vote. “The White House is seeking to block key testimony from current and former White House staff. It is also withholding thousands of records from Joe Biden’s time as Vice President. President Biden must be held accountable for his lies, corruption, and obstruction. We have a duty to provide the accountability and transparency that Americans demand and deserve.” HOUSE OVERSIGHT DEMOCRAT QUIETLY MEETING WITH GOP LAWMAKERS IN EFFORT TO QUASH IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY: SOURCES The GOP-led committees on Oversight, Ways & Means and the Judiciary have been investigating Biden over accusations he had leveraged his office of vice president in the Obama administration to enrich his family through foreign businesses. It’s been heavily centered on one of the president’s brothers, James Biden, and his son, Hunter Biden — who is under federal investigation for tax and firearm-related charges. COMER DEFENDS PRIVATE DEPOSITION OF HUNTER BIDEN, VOWS TO RELEASE TRANSCRIPT AND HOLD PUBLIC HEARING Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., directed the House to open an impeachment inquiry into Biden in September, but the White House has dismissed the probe as illegitimate without a formal vote on the matter. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., told Fox News Digital that the White House “requested” the House vote itself. “The White House sent a letter…saying that the subpoenas [Republicans] had served will not be honored and won’t even be recognized without a full vote of the House. So our speaker has done exactly what I would expect he would do as a lawyer. We’re going to honor that. We’re going to go ahead and do a full floor vote,” Emmer said. “He knows we’re probably going to have to go to court to enforce these anyway, so might as well eliminate any of the objections that they have.” Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, told Fox News Digital that Republicans were undertaking their vote because they recognize the gravity of impeachment proceedings. NOTORIOUS MOBSTER STUNNED BY LATEST HUNTER BIDEN ALLEGATIONS: ‘MIND-BLOWING’ “We don’t want to minimize what it means to have an impeachment, which I think is what the Democrats did. We want to be able to have that tool to be a significant tool to hold presidents accountable,” she said. “We don’t want it just to be a knee jerk reaction.” Judiciary Committee member Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., said similarly, “I think the House Republicans will follow the facts where they lead…will make sure that we have the facts, and that we present the facts to the American people.” In a statement following the vote, Biden accused House Republicans of wasting time with political attacks and avoiding critical issues facing the nation. “We have to address the situation at our southern border, and I am determined to try to fix the problem. We need funding to strengthen border security, but Republicans in Congress won’t act to help,” Biden said. Biden said he is also working to “make sure inflation keeps going down and job growth keeps going up” — but accused Congress of refusing to help him. “Instead of doing anything to help make Americans’ lives better, they are focused on attacking me with lies. Instead of doing their job on the urgent work that needs to be done, they are choosing to waste time on this baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts,” Biden said. The vote comes hours after Hunter Biden made a surprise appearance outside of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday morning. He had been scheduled to appear for a closed-door deposition with the Oversight Committee, but instead he delivered a brief statement to reporters on his father’s professed innocence before departing Capitol Hill altogether.
AOC defends Hunter Biden after refusal to testify before Congress; GOP just ‘story telling at this point’
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, defended Hunter Biden on Wednesday amid criticism by Republicans after he refused to testify before lawmakers behind closed doors. The president’s son was subpoenaed to appear before the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees. He instead held a press conference Wednesday on Capitol Hill in which he refused to sit for a deposition while declaring that his father was never involved in his business dealings. Republicans have threatened to hold him in contempt of Congress. HUNTER BIDEN WILL NOT SIT FOR DEPOSITION BY GOP, SAYS FATHER NOT ‘FINANCIALLY’ INVOLVED IN HIS BUSINESS Ocasio-Cortez joined a press conference with fellow Democrats to criticize Republicans where she said Biden was attempting to comply with the subpoena. “It’s also important to note, that not only is the committee not allowing Hunter Biden to testify publicly, but they have not called a single witness, a single first-hand witness to any of their allegations,” she said. “They haven’t allowed anybody to testify publicly, because they do not have a single witness to any of their alleged allegations. They don’t.” “We have asked virtually every single person that has come to testify for this committee, ‘Have you seen, witnessed, participated, in a room, anything with first-hand testimony of any of what is being alleged?’” And every single witness that they have called before us has said, ‘No, I haven’t seen anything, didn’t hear anything, wasn’t party to anything,” she added. WH SPURNS BIDEN FAMILY ‘CONSPIRACY THEORIES’ AHEAD OF LIKELY IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY VOTE, HUNTER BIDEN DEPOSITION “So this is just story telling at this point.” During his press conference, Biden defended the president and said critics have “belittled my recovery, and they have tried to dehumanize me, all to embarrass my father, who has devoted his entire life to public service. For six years I have been a target of the unrelenting Trump attack team. ‘Where’s Hunter?’ Well, here’s my answer. I am here.” “My father was not financially involved in my business,” he said, saying the elder Biden was not involved in his dealings with Ukrainian natural gas firm Burisma Holdings, or his Chinese investments and others in the United States. Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Kentucky, and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said they would start proceedings to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress. “Today, the House will vote on an impeachment inquiry resolution to strengthen our legal case in the courts as we face obstruction from the White House and witnesses,” both lawmakers said in a joint statement. “Today’s obstruction by Hunter Biden reinforces the need for a formal vote. President Biden and his family must be held accountable for their corruption and obstruction. And we will provide that to the American people.”
WATCH: White House says Biden ‘proud’ of Hunter despite mounting legal issues, subpoena defiance
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday that President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden were “proud” of their son, Hunter, despite his defiance of a subpoena to testify before Congress and his mounting legal issues. “When it comes to the president and the first lady, they are proud of him continuing to rebuild his life. They are proud of their son,” Jean-Pierre said when asked during the White House press briefing whether Biden had watched Hunter’s press conference outside the U.S. Capitol earlier in the day announcing his decision not to comply with the subpoena issued by House Republicans. “The president was certainly familiar with what his son was going to say. And I think what you saw was from the heart, from his son,” she added. SUPPORT FOR BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY GROWS WITH A NOTABLE LEVEL OF DEMOCRAT BACKING: POLL When asked if Biden was okay with Hunter defying the subpoena, Jean-Pierre refused to “get into the specifics” surrounding the president’s view. She also wouldn’t say the last time Biden and Hunter had spoken, noting those were “private” conversations. Jean-Pierre was later pressed on Biden previously stating that people who defied congressional subpoenas should be prosecuted, comments he made in 2021 amid a probe into the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, but she declined to comment. HUNTER BIDEN FACES BACKLASH AFTER DEFYING SUBPOENA WITH PRESS CONFERENCE ‘STUNT’: ‘HOLD HIM IN CONTEMPT!’ “I don’t have anything to add to what you have, what you just quoted me from the president. I just don’t have anything to add,” she said. At his press conference Wednesday morning, Hunter offered to testify publicly before the House Oversight Committee, but declined to show for his scheduled closed-door deposition for which he was subpoenaed. He maintained that his father “was not financially involved” in the business dealings for which House Republicans are investigating him, and said there was “no evidence because it did not happen.” WH SPURNS BIDEN FAMILY ‘CONSPIRACY THEORIES’ AHEAD OF LIKELY IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY VOTE, HUNTER BIDEN DEPOSITION In his statement, Hunter blasted “MAGA” Republicans who he said “invaded” his privacy, “attacked” his family, and “ridiculed my struggle with addiction.” Hunter is also facing a number of federal charges in California after being indicted last week. The nine charges allege a “four-year scheme” when he did not pay his federal income taxes from January 2017 to October 2020 while also filing false tax reports. Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
Judge pauses Jan. 6 case against Trump amid former president’s appeal to dismiss
The judge presiding over the case against former President Trump and his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election acknowledged she does not have jurisdiction over the matter while it is pending before the Supreme Court, and put a pause on the case against the Republican 2024 frontrunner until the high court determines its involvement. Special Counsel Jack Smith on Monday asked the Supreme Court to rule on whether former President Trump can be prosecuted on charges relating to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. TRUMP LEGAL TEAM FILES MOTION TO PAUSE PROCEEDINGS PENDING APPEAL A federal judge ruled the case could go forward, but Trump said he would ask the federal appeals court in Washington to reverse that outcome. Smith is attempting to bypass the appeals court — the usual next step in the process — and have the Supreme Court take up the matter directly. The Supreme Court, late Monday, asked Trump’s lawyers to respond to the special counsel’s motion by next Wednesday, December 20 — two days later than Smith had requested. Lawyers for former President Donald Trump filed a motion Tuesday urging Judge Tanya Chutkan to pause proceedings against Trump in the Jan. 6 case while his appeal is pending. SUPREME COURT: TRUMP MUST RESPOND TO SPECIAL COUNSEL’S PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY PETITION BEFORE CHRISTMAS Chutkan, in a filing Wednesday, said she “agrees with both parties that Defendant’s appeal automatically stays any further proceedings that would move this case towards trial or impose additional burdens of litigation on Defendant.” “Accordingly, and for clarity, the court hereby stays the deadlines and proceedings scheduled by its Pretrial Order, as amended,” Chutkan wrote. Chutkan added that if Trump “asks the court reviewing his immunity appeal to also take a temporary jurisdiction over the enforcement of those measures, and that court agrees to do so, this court of course will be bound by that decision.” SPECIAL COUNSEL JACK SMITH TO USE DATA FROM TRUMP’S PHONE IN ELECTION INTERFERENCE TRIAL: COURT FILING The trial was set to begin March 4, but now that start date could be delayed. Chutkan said that she would reconsider the trial date at the completion of the appeals process. Trump, in August, pleaded not guilty in federal court to all four federal charges stemming from Smith’s investigation into 2020 election interference and the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Trump is charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights. The Supreme Court’s next scheduled conference day for consideration of such matters is Jan. 5, 2024. The court’s brief order did not signal what it ultimately would do.
Three court of criminal appeal judges up for reelection targeted by Ken Paxton’s political revenge machine
Paxton promised to go after the Republican judges over their 2021 ruling that struck down the attorney general’s ability to unilaterally prosecute voter fraud.