For months, Hunter Biden said he would only testify before Congress if it was in public. But President Joe Biden’s son will now go behind closed doors Wednesday to face off with his Republican detractors on Capitol Hill for a deposition.
The interview came together after months of public sniping, political stunts, the threat of criminal contempt and hardball negotiations that resulted in two key concessions from Republicans – that the deposition will not be filmed and that the transcript will be released quickly to the public, sources familiar with the talks told CNN.
Hunter Biden’s appearance Wednesday represents the most significant testimony to date for the two congressional committees leading the impeachment inquiry into President Biden, a probe that’s heavily focused on Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings.
Sources familiar with terms negotiated between Hunter Biden’s team and congressional Republicans told CNN that the deposition will have several unique features that are different from the other interviews the committees have conducted to date:
No video: The deposition will not be videotaped, according to multiple sources. This was a significant concession from Republicans, as interviews with other Biden family business associates and related witnesses have all been filmed.
Transcript release: The two sides also have agreed to the terms of the transcript release as a way to avoid selective leaks, the sources said. Normally, the committee chair has to get the ranking member of the opposite party on the committee to sign off to release a transcript, or else the full committee decides. Both sides assume there will not be a conflict in releasing this transcript, and after a review to redact any sensitive information like names of congressional staffers, it could be released quickly, potentially within 24 hours after the deposition wraps.
Read more about Hunter Biden’s deposition.
Sumber: www.cnn.com
