McCarthy: Hunter Biden Request for Probe Into Laptop Leak ‘Attorney Tactic’ to Stall

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A request by Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, to investigate the dissemination of the contents of a laptop he had abandoned is a legal tactic intended to stall the House of Representatives’ own probe into potential influence peddling, Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, an attorney representing Hunter Biden asked state and federal authorities to probe the dissemination of the laptop and its contents, alleging criminal conduct, US media reported.

"I think it’s an attorney tactic to try to stop something," McCarthy said during a news conference.

The probe request will not impact the House’s own investigation into potential influence peddling by the Biden family, McCarthy said.

The request marks the first time Hunter Biden has publicly admitted to the fact that it was indeed his data on the device and lawmakers will "get to the bottom" of the matter, McCarthy added.

The US House Oversight Committee is expected to hold its first hearing next week in its probe into the potential influence peddling, panel chair James Comer said. The committee will hear testimony from former Twitter officials about their role in censoring reports about the Hunter Biden laptop story ahead of the 2020 US presidential election.

The Oversight Committee’s investigation is also focused on learning about foreign business deals by Hunter Biden, such as what sort of consulting work he performed, for whom, and how much he was paid, Comer said.

The probe is linked to other ongoing investigations into Joe Biden’s potential mishandling of classified documents, Comer also said. It would be an impeachable offense if Biden is found to have used those documents in a way to enrich his family, Comer added.