(WASHINGTON) — Rob Walker, a longtime business associate of Hunter Biden, said in a closed-door interview on Friday with the GOP-led House Oversight Committee that President Joe Biden “was never involved” in Hunter Biden’s business dealings, according to Walker’s opening statement obtained by ABC News.
“To be clear, President Biden — while in office or as a private citizen — was never involved in any of the business activities we pursued. Any statement to the contrary is simply false,” Walker said in his opening statement.
Walker added that the president’s son “made sure there was always a clear boundary between any business and his father. Always. And as his partner, I always understood and respected that boundary.”
During the interview, Walker submitted the statement to the record and read it verbatim, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
In his opening statement, Walker also expressed concern that his words would be taken out of context by House Republicans.
Walker’s statement that President Biden had no involvement with Hunter’s business dealings matches what numerous previous associates have told the Oversight Committee as Republicans continue their impeachment inquiry into the president.
Hunter Biden had initially balked at the committee’s request to interview him behind closed doors for fear of Republicans mischaracterizing his testimony in the same way that his confidant Kevin Morris has accused them of doing. Earlier this month, however, Hunter Biden and the panel struck a deal for him to testify behind closed doors at the end of February.
Members from the three committees charged with leading the impeachment inquiry — judiciary, oversight and ways and means — will be able to attend and ask questions during Hunter Biden’s testimony.
“We have a lot of questions,” said House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer.
A House Oversight Committee report recommending a contempt charge against Hunter Biden stated that his testimony was “necessary” to determine whether there are “sufficient grounds” for impeachment of the president. Comer said earlier this month that “we’re very concerned that the president of the United States could be compromised.”
Hunter Biden and his allies have denounced the Republican-led probe as nothing more than an effort to smear his father’s political career. Joe Biden has denied any financial involvement in his son’s business activities, and the panel has yet to find evidence of a crime by the president.
The younger Biden faces two federal criminal cases brought by special counsel David Weiss in California and Delaware related to alleged tax and gun violations, respectively. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
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