The day the verdict was reached in New York v. Trump will go down as a dark day in our nation’s history. The former president was convicted and could be thrown in jail over charges that should have never been brought against him in the first place. This case was led by a left-wing prosecutor who ran for office promising to bring charges against Trump; it was overseen by a left-wing judge whose own daughter was helping Democrat politicians fundraise off the trial; and it was held in one of the most liberal cities in America.
What the verdict in New York v. Trump makes clear is that liberals are intent on using any means necessary to stop their political opponents. While Trump’s case will rightly be overturned on appeal, this whole sham process has been about one thing — the Biden administration’s allies using the government to silence their political opponents, something the Left has been doing for years. We saw it with the Russia collusion hoax, the two sham impeachments, and the effort by liberal states to ban Trump from the ballot, an egregious example of election interference that was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court.
At the same time the Left is going to unprecedented lengths to take down its political opponents, also using the government to protect its allies, something we have seen time and again throughout House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry, which I’m helping to lead as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.
Under my leadership, the Ways and Means Committee helped bring to light the testimony of two brave IRS whistleblowers who alleged that the Department of Justice (DOJ) obstructed and blocked their investigation into the president’s son, Hunter Biden. In addition, they exposed that President Biden was not truthful when he told the American people that he was unaware of his son’s shady, multimillion-dollar business schemes. As the evidence we’ve uncovered makes clear, Joe Biden isn’t the only member of his family who hasn’t been truthful.
According to new evidence, Hunter Biden and the president’s brother, James Biden, made false statements to Congress about their involvement in what should be considered a clear scheme to enrich the Biden family. Lying to Congress is a serious crime, and one that cannot go unpunished.
On June 5, Oversight Chairman James Comer (Kentucky), Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio) and I sent criminal referrals to the DOJ recommending Hunter and James Biden be charged with making false statements to Congress about key aspects of the impeachment inquiry of President Biden. These false statements implicate Joe Biden’s knowledge of and role in his family’s influence-peddling schemes and appear to be a calculated effort to shield Joe Biden from the impeachment inquiry.
Congress cannot allow anyone, not even the president’s son or his brother, to stand in the way of its oversight of the executive branch or deny the American people the accountability they deserve. Lying during sworn testimony is a felony offense that the DOJ has prosecuted numerous individuals for in recent years. I hope the DOJ will do what’s right and act on our criminal referral. But no matter what happens next, I promise I will never back down in the fight against the Left’s efforts to turn America into a nation with two tiers of justice: one for the wealthy and politically connected, and one for everyone else.
JASON SMITH represents Missouri’s 8th Congressional District.
