To: Interested Parties
From: David Brock, Facts First President
Re: Guide to House GOP Conspiracy Theory Investigations for the first Republican Presidential Primary Debate
Date: Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Ahead of the first Republican Presidential Primary Debate, Facts First is releasing a guide to House Republicans’ abuse of government oversight to settle partisan scores. This report will provide you with the facts and the truth behind the lies and fevered conspiracy dreams of Congressmen Comer & Jordan that will be echoed by the other MAGA extremists on stage in Milwaukee.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer’s Investigation Is An Embarrassing Spectacle
James Comer started his investigation by lamenting the fact that he could not try to prosecute Beau Biden, President Biden’s son who passed away from cancer[1]. Then, Comer allowed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to show nude photos of a private citizen during a House committee hearing[2], after which she proceeded to distribute the photos from her official email list potentially violating state and federal laws[3].
In another embarrassing display, Comer claimed his informant was “missing”[4] and that others were in court or in jail[5]. Then, the “lost” informant who Comer insisted was “very credible” was indicted by the Justice Department and accused of being an unregistered foreign agent for China, an international arms trafficker, violating U.S. sanctions on Iran, and lying to investigators[6]. This series of events was so embarrassing it prompted House Oversight Committee Democrats to send Comer a letter expressing concerns that Republicans had been “manipulated” by “an apparent con man” and “fugitive from justice.[7]” It’s been eight months and Comer’s credibility is nowhere to be found.
James Comer Admitted His Investigation Is All About Politics and Revenge
Comer and House Republicans also have a habit of saying the quiet part out loud. Like in May, when Comer suggested his probe was responsible for former President Trump being ahead of President Biden in some polls[8], then tried to claim he’d never suggested such a thing[9]. Even earlier in April, Comer admitted his investigation was about revenge when he claimed county attorneys in Kentucky and Tennessee called him and asked how they could investigate President Biden as a response to Trump’s indictment in New York[10]. Now, Rep. Matt Gaetz admitted that House Republican impeachment pushes are about providing Comer a stage in the senate to broadcast his conspiracy theories[11]. They all know its political theater; they told us themselves.
James Comer Has No Evidence For His Allegations Against President Biden – And He Knows It
Time and time again, James Comer has claimed his investigation is about Joe Biden, but with every new, big announcement, Comer has presented no proof of wrongdoing by the president[12]. Comer has even admitted more than once that he has no proof, only innuendo[13]. Even Senator Ron Johnson admitted there was no “hard proof” in the Republican investigations[14]. Comer’s own witnesses have debunked Republican conspiracy theories about President Biden,[15] which Comer would know except he didn’t bother to show up to the interview with his much-hyped witness[16].
What Comer seems most interested in doing is recycling debunked conspiracy theories leftover by former Trump advisor Rudy Giuliani[17]. This was especially evident when Comer dramatically threatened to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress,[18] just because he could, over a form that Comer admitted to having already seen that contained unverified tips[19]. Then, Senator Chuck Grassley admitted the truth: Republicans did not care if the allegations in the form were true or not, they just wanted to publicize them[20]. The whole embarrassing saga ended with Comer caving on his contempt threat, and then Comer and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan had to admit they did not know if recordings described in the form that were advertised by Senator Grassley were legitimate or not[21]. Even notorious conspiracy theorist Senator Ron Johnson threw cold water on the claims.
They have shown no evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden and when confronted with the facts Comer shows his true colors and resorts to personal attacks against a White House staffer[22].
James Comer Cherry Picks Information And Then Exaggerates His “Findings” To Cover For The Fact That His Investigation Is A Waste Of Time And Taxpayer Money
All of Comer’s bluster, innuendo, and embarrassing events has earned him three “Pinocchio’s” from the Washington Post fact checker who knocked Comer for making hyperbolic claims about his investigation on social media and conservative TV despite hedging claims in official reports[23]. The fact checker reiterated as well that Comer has not presented evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden. The fact checker also dinged Comer for publishing highly partisan memos that ignore or downplay contrary information. A fact House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin has frequently pointed out[24]. Most recently, Raskin accused Comer of being on a “lost-in-the wilderness fishing expedition” that has yielded no evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden and of timing the release of transcripts to distract from former President Trump’s indictments. Comer is clearly not interested in conducting serious government oversight, he just wants to score partisan political points.
2024 GOP Presidential Candidates Will Likely Use The House GOP Investigation To Score Partisan Political Points, But They Should Address Their Own Abuses Of Power Instead
- Scandals run deep in Ron DeSantis’ tenure as governor of Florida. From his abuse of government to take advantage of vulnerable migrants[25], to changing state law so he can hold on to power while running for president[26], DeSantis frequently weaponizes government for his own political benefit[27]. One thing DeSantis should have to address though is his time as a legal advisor at Guantanamo Bay, during which he reportedly advised an officer that they could force-feed detainees, something that is considered torture by the international community[28].
- If we’re talking about corruption, we have to mention Chris Christie. His tenure as governor was full of scandals[29], so much so that when Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign vetted him as a potential vice-presidential nominee, they concluded his background was “littered with potential landmines.[30]” Then there was Bridgegate and Beachgate[31], questions over his use of Hurricane Sandy relief funds[32], using a state police helicopter to travel to his son’s baseball game[33]. We could go on and on.
- We must move on to Nikki Haley though, who abruptly resigned as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations after an ethics watchdog requested that the State Department investigate her acceptance of seven free private jet flights from three South Carolina businessmen – flights she likely grossly undervalued. Those businessmen had also previously donated about $40,000 to Haley’s gubernatorial campaign[34].
- Speaking of former governors there is Mike Pence who unapologetically used campaign funds to pay for personal expenses during his 1990 congressional campaign[35]. While governor of Indiana, he refused to help one of his own cities, East Chicago, clean up lead contaminated water[36], and he failed to quickly address an outbreak of HIV in Indiana[37]. Then, he willingly served as the right-hand man to Donald Trump who, as president, sought to weaponize government for personal political gain at every turn[38].
- Two of the 2024 candidates have also engaged in questionable campaign finance practices. Senator Tim Scott may be exploiting a loophole in campaign finance law to avoid having to be fully transparent about who is campaign vendors are[39]. Then, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum literally paid people to donate to his campaign so he would qualify for the first debate[40].
- Last, we have newcomer Vivek Ramaswamy, who has never held public office, but is no stranger to scandal. Ramaswamy once worked for a hedge fund firm that made a large investment in a biotech company run by convicted fraudster and “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli. Ramaswamy had previously called Shkreli “brilliant” and questioned why the Justice Department went after him so aggressively[41]. Ramaswamy also reportedly hired a Wikipedia editor to scrub his page before he announced his presidential campaign[42].
It’s Been Eight Months And James Comer Failed To Put Up, Now It’s Time To Shut Up
Daily Beast: “House Oversight Chair Laments That Joe Biden’s Dead Son Was Never Prosecuted”
Washington Post: “House GOP Chairman Links His Investigation To Biden’s Poll Numbers”
Huffington Post: “GOP Rep. James Comer Implies Biden Family Probe Is Really About Helping Trump In 2024”
Salon: “Look At The Polling”: James Comer Brags That GOP’s Biden Crusade Is Boosting Trump’s Numbers”
NBC News: “White House Memo Says GOP Was Caught ‘Telling The Truth’ On Motive For Hunter Biden”
MSNBC: “GOP’s Comer Says A Bit Too Much About The Point Of Anti-Biden Probe”
Daily Beast: “James Comer Now Falsely Claims He Didn’t Link Biden Probe To Trump Poll Numbers”
MSNBC: “Comer points to GOP prosecutors eager to weaponize justice system”
New Republic: “Matt Gaetz Admits Biden Impeachment Is Really About Helping Republicans In 2024”
Huffington Post: “Matt Gaetz Says Biden Impeachment A ‘Platform’ To Tarnish President Before 2024”
Washington Post (Fact Checker): “How Republicans overhype the findings of their Hunter Biden probe”
Politico: “House GOP’s Biden investigations sputter out of the gate”
MSNBC: “Republicans realize committee crusaders are off to a ‘rocky start’”
Raw Story: “GOP frustrated as House investigations fail to find dirt on Biden: report”
Courier Journal (Opinion): “Investigate the investigator: James Comer must be sidelined pending thorough inquiry”
The Independent: “Republicans offer no evidence of crimes at press conference on alleged ‘Biden family corruption’”
TIME Magazine: “Comer Investigation of Biden Relatives Swings and Misses on Allegations of Influence Peddling”
New Republic: “Republicans Finally Admit They Have No Incriminating Evidence on Joe Biden”
Politico: “Comer releases Biden family probe update without showing link to president”
The Hill: “House GOP digs in on Biden family dealings without directly connecting president”
New York Times: “House Republican Report Finds No Evidence of Wrongdoing by President Biden”
RealClearPolitics: “‘FOX & Friends’ Grills Rep. James Comer On Biden Investigation: ‘Did They Break Any Laws?’”
Mediaite: “Steve Doocy Confronts Rep. James Comer Over Biden Investigation: ‘Did They Break Any Laws?’”
MSNBC: “Facing ‘make-or-break moment,’ GOP’s Comer fails spectacularly”
Daily Beast: “Fox News Host Still Isn’t Buying What James Comer Is Selling”
Huffington Post: “Fox News Host Trashes House GOP Probe Of Biden”
Huffington Post: “Rep. James Comer’s Update On GOP Probe Into Bidens’ Business Dealings Is Weak Sauce”
PoliticsUSA: “Top House Republican Admits They Have Nothing On Joe Biden”
Washington Post (Column) “The Biden ‘bribery’ allegation slips on more banana peels”
New Republic: “Could James Comer Possibly Get More Embarrassing? (Um, Yes.)”
Washington Post (Column): “James Comer has a James Comer problem”
The Independent: “Republican claims of Biden family ‘corruption’ are being undermined by their own whistleblowers”
Washington Post (Column): “50 days later, the Biden bribery allegation is no more credible”
Vanity Fair: “Is the Sheer Stupidity of Republican Politics Breaking Through?”
USA Today: “House Republicans issue new report on Joe Biden corruption… that again offers no evidence”
Washington Post (Column): “So where’s the bribe, James Comer?”
ABC News: “House GOP releases new memo on Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings, reviving old claims”
MSNBC: “James Comer isn’t doing GOP any favors with latest anti-Biden dud”
Daily Beast: “GOP ‘Shamelessly Moving the Goal Posts’ in Hunter Biden Probe: White House”
The Independent: “House Oversight Chair Admits GOP Can’t Back Up Biden Bribery Accusations”
AlterNet: “’I sure hope so’: Comer unsure if he can prove President Biden took part in bribery scheme”
Mediaite: “Hannity Flat-Out Asks Comer ‘Will You Be Able To Prove’ Biden Took Bribe — Comer: ‘I Sure Hope So’”
Daily Beast: “GOP Senator Admits Biden Probe Lacks ‘Hard Proof’ to Support Hype”
NBC News: “Hunter Biden business associate testifies he has no knowledge of wrongdoing by Joe Biden”
Huffington Post: “Star Witness Undercuts Republican Corruption Case Against Joe Biden”
New York Times: “Key Witness Doesn’t Back Up G.O.P.’S Biggest Allegations On Bidens”
MSNBC: “The GOP’s latest anti-Biden witness extends the party’s losing streak”
Washington Post (Column): “Devon Archer said the opposite of what Republicans claimed”
Salon: “’Truly stunning”: Republican admits hyped Biden witness ‘didn’t know anything’ about alleged bribe
Daily Beast: “James Comer Skipped His Panel’s Big Biden Probe Interview With Devon Archer”
The Independent: “James Comer called Devon Archer’s interview about the Bidens a ‘bombshell’. He wasn’t actually there”
Daily Beast: “James Comer Has A New, Unlikely Story For Missed Deposition”
The Messenger: “Watchdog Ethics Complaint Says Powerful House GOP Chairman Lied About Phoning into Hunter Biden Associate Interview”
The Hill: “Bipartisan group calls for investigation into Comer’s remarks about missing whistleblower”
Washington Post: “Rep. James Comer is looking for anti-Biden evidence. Also, his informant.”
The Independent: “House Oversight Chairman James Comer claims to have lost his informant in Biden probe”
The Daily Beast: “GOP Oversight Chair Says He’s Lost Track of His Biden Corruption Informant”
Salon: “James Comer’s big ‘informant’ against Joe Biden goes ‘missing’ — but MAGA won’t care”
Salon: “James Comer mocked after claiming informant his ‘entire charade was built on’ is ‘missing’”
Huffington Post: “Joe Scarborough Gleefully Mocks James Comer For Losing Informant In Biden Probe”
Huffington Post: “James Comer Links ‘Missing’ Biden Informant To ‘Spy Business’ In Wild Claim”
MSNBC: “GOP’s Comer ‘can’t track down’ his own anti-Biden ‘informant’”
Washington Post: “Republicans say they would like to call witness despite criminal indictment”
Huffington Post: “Mystery GOP Whistleblower Accused Of Being Unregistered Foreign Agent, Arms Dealer”
Daily Beast: “GOP’s ‘Missing’ Biden Probe Witness Faces Laundry List of Federal Charges”
MSNBC: “James Comer’s missing ‘informant’ isn’t doing the GOP any favors”
NBC News: “GOP House ‘informant’ indicted on allegations he was an agent for China”
Daily Beast: “Maria Bartiromo Seems Really Confused by Her Own Conspiracy Theory”
Axios: “Democrats demand GOP investigate its own indicted whistleblower”
The Independent: “Democrats call for probe into whether ‘whistleblower’ Gal Luft made claims about Biden to help China”
Huffington Post: “Jamie Raskin Rips Republicans For Hyping ‘Con Man’ Gal Luft”
Salon: “Hunter Biden “whistleblower” exposed as a fugitive and accused spy — but MAGA won’t budge”
Raw Story: “’Manipulated by an apparent con man’: House Oversight Dems roast James Comer in scathing letter”
Reuters: “Former FBI agent says he was not aware of interference in Hunter Biden probe”
Talking Points Memo: “Comer Tries To Run The First Trump Impeachment In Reverse”
Huffington Post: “Inside The Hunter Biden Doom Loop”
Axios: “Former Giuliani associate urges Comer to ‘abandon’ Biden investigation”
NBC News: “’A wild goose chase’: Giuliani associate urges House GOP to abandon Biden probe”
New Republic: “James Comer’s New Critic: Giuliani Bud Says He Should Drop Hunter Biden Probe”
Raw Story: “’Simply no merit’: Ex-Giuliani associate urges Comer to drop Hunter Biden probe”
Newsweek: “James Comer Calls Ukraine ‘Adversary’ of United States”
New Republic: “James Comer Doesn’t Seem to Care If Biden Probe Evidence Is Legit”
Washington Post (Column): “The GOP ‘bribery’ allegations against Biden remain transparently thin”
New Republic: “Inside The GOP’s Latest Desperate Attempt To Smear Joe Biden”
Newsweek: “Republican Admits Biden Tapes Might Not Be Smoking Gun”
Washington Post (Column): “Republicans keep spilling cold water on their Biden bribery allegations”
Newsweek: “More Republicans Cast Doubt on Joe Biden Tapes’ Legitimacy”
Huffington Post: “Republicans ‘Not Interested’ In Whether Biden Bribe Allegation Is True, Chuck Grassley Says”
New Republic: “GOP Senator Admits Republicans Don’t Care If Accusations Against Joe Biden Are ‘Accurate’”
Newsweek: “Republican Says It Doesn’t Matter If Joe Biden Accusations Are ‘Accurate'”
Huffington Post: “Republicans Acknowledge Biden Bribe Audio Might Not Exist”
Daily Beast: “Republicans Admit They ‘Don’t Know’ if Biden Bribery Tapes ‘Really Exist’”
Mediaite: “Ron Johnson Clarifies ‘We Don’t Know’ If Biden Bribery Tapes ‘Really Exist’”
Newsmax: “Sen. Ron Johnson to Newsmax: ‘We Don’t Know’ If Biden Recordings Exist.”
Business Insider: “The FBI is furious Chuck Grassley released an internal document that makes unverified claims about Hunter and Joe Biden accepting bribes”
Associated Press: “Senate Republican Grassley criticized for releasing FBI FD-1023 form in full despite unsubstantiated Hunter Biden claims”
The Hill: “Grassley faces criticism over release of FBI document”
New Republic: “Marjorie Taylor Greene May Have Sent Hunter Biden Nudes to a Bunch of Minors”
MSNBC: “’The circus has come to town’: House Dem on GOP Hunter Biden probe”
Washington Post: “Marjorie Taylor Greene’s explicit visuals at Hunter Biden hearing draw rebuke”
Daily Beast: “Marjorie Taylor Greene Inflicts Hunter Biden Nudes on Congress”
Huffington Post: “Marjorie Taylor Greene Shows Photos Of Naked Hunter Biden At IRS Whistleblower Hearing”
New Republic: “Republicans Have So Little Hunter Biden Evidence They Shared His Nudes Instead”
Business Insider: “MTG said she was ‘uncomfortable’ showing photos of Hunter Biden having sex but Americans ‘deserve’ to see them”
Newsweek: “Marjorie Taylor Greene Defends Showing ‘Uncomfortable’ Hunter Biden Nudes”
The Independent: “Marjorie Taylor Greene sparks outrage by showing explicit photos of Hunter Biden at congressional hearing”
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Facts First is a bipartisan organization focused on ensuring that our national discourse is grounded in facts and honest debate. Facts First USA will keep the focus on facts in the face of abuse of government oversight being used to settle partisan scores. Learn more at FactsFirstUSA.org
[12] New York Times, 5/10/23; Huffington Post, 5/11/23; Washington Post, Philip Bump, 8/9/23; USA Today, 8/9/23;
[13] Mediaite, 4/18/23; The Independent, 8/2/23
[15] NBC News, 8/3/23; New York Times, 8/4/23; Reuters, 8/14/23
[16] Daily Beast, 8/2/23; The Independent, 8/3/23; Daily Beast, 8/9/23
[17] Talking Points Memo, 6/6/23; Huffington Post, 7/11/23; Axios, 7/18/23
[18] Washington Post, Philip Bump, 6/1/23; Daily Caller, 6/1/23
[19] FBI Letter to House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, 5/10/23; Axios, 5/3/23; Politico, 5/24/23; CNN, 6/2/23; NBC News, 6/5/23; Washington Post, 6/7/23
[20] New Republic, 6/1/23; Business Insider, 7/20/23; Associated Press, 7/22/23; The Hill, 7/25/23
[21] New Republic, 6/13/23; CNN, 6/15/23; Daily Beast, 6/15/23
[22] Washington Free Beacon, 3/3/23; Mediaite, 8/10/23
[23] Washington Post, Fact Checker, 8/17/23
[24] Washington Post, 4/6/23; Huffington Post, 6/29/23; Axios, 7/28/23; Huffington Post, 8/16/23
[26] Business Insider, 5/24/23
[28] Miami Herald, 3/7/23; Washington Post, 3/19/23; The Guardian, 4/28/23
[29] Politico, 10/27/16; NPR, 10/28/16; Business Insider, 7/5/17; The Week, 6/4/23
[32] CNN, 1/13/14; Politico, 1/15/14
[33] Politico, 1/15/14; The Week, 6/4/23
[34] Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Press Release, 10/8/18; Business Insider, 10/9/18; New York Times, 10/9/18; Washington Post, 10/10/18