Where in the world is Rudy Giuliani?
That is what a handful of Democrats on the House Oversight Committee asked during the Sept. 28 impeachment inquiry hearing about President Joe Biden allegedly being involved in his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings, which have included overseas work, including in China.
Toward the beginning of the hours-long hearing, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the committee’s ranking member, called for the subpoenaed testimony of Mr. Giuliani, who was the mayor of New York City and former President Donald Trump’s lawyer, and his associate Lev Parnas before the committee.
Mr. Raskin cited Mr. Trump’s first impeachment, which was the result of a phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky where the former asked the latter to investigate the corruption of Mr. Joe Biden and Mr. Hunter Biden, the latter of whom sat on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma. Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Parnas were allegedly part of the effort to investigate the Bidens as it pertained to Ukraine, which is now at war following an invasion by Russia in February 2022.
Then-Vice President Joe Biden allegedly got Ukraine’s top prosecutor, Mr. Viktor Shokin, fired in 2016 over apparently investigating Burisma while Mr. Hunter Biden was on its board. However, President Joe Biden and his supporters defended the move as rooting out corruption in Ukraine.
Mr. Parnas was convicted of campaign finance violations in 2021, while Mr. Giuliani was indicted last month in Fulton County, Georgia, for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election in that state.
The committee voted along party lines to table Mr. Raskin’s motion for Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Parnas to be subpoenaed to appear before the GOP-controlled committee, 20–19. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, put forth the motion to table.
Later on, Rep. Kwame Mfume (D-Md.) brought up a motion to have just Mr. Giuliani be subpoenaed to appear before the committee, but that too was tabled along party lines, 20–18. Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wisc.) brought forth the motion to table.
Mr. Mfume expressed disgust at the outcome.
“I ask the question: Where in the world is Rudy Giuliani? That’s how we got here, ladies and gentlemen,” he said. “And this committee is afraid to bring him before us and put him on the record. Shame! And the question was raised what does this have to do with it. It has everything to do it!”
The motions to table were an apparent attempt by the Republicans to protect President Trump.
The witnesses at the hearing include law professors Jonathan Turley and Michael Gerhardt, former Assistant Attorney General Eileen O’Connor and forensic accountant and fraud investigator Bruce Dubinsky.
