Kevin McCarthy Throws Support Behind Holding FBI Director in Contempt of Congress

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) threw his support behind the House Oversight Committee’s intent to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress.

The committee’s chair James Comer (R-KY) announced a Thursday vote to hold Wray in contempt after the FBI refused to hand over custody of an unclassified subpoenaed file during a Monday meeting.

The file allegedly details a $5 million bribery scheme involving policy decisions between now-President Joe Biden and a foreign national.

The FBI possesses a file from an interview it conducted with the informant, who is reportedly a “highly credible” bureau source with a history dating back to the Obama administration era. A source told Fox News the informant was a “pre-existing” FBI source with a long track record dating back “at least several years.”

WATCH: “Give Me a Break, Man” — Biden SNAPS at Reporter Asking About Family’s Business Relations in China:

The White House

“At the briefing, the FBI again refused to hand over the unclassified record to the custody of the House Oversight Committee and we will now initiate contempt of Congress hearings this Thursday,” Comer told reporters.

James Comer on FBI document exposing Biden Crime Family:

"It suggests a pattern of bribery, where payments would be made through shell accounts and multiple banks. There's a term for that — it's called money laundering." pic.twitter.com/OlWrvxc7Vv

— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) June 5, 2023

Speaking with reporters, McCarthy supported Comer’s decision.

“Everybody on that committee has the responsibility of oversight,” McCarthy said. “[Wray] needs to supply it to everybody on the committee. If not we will move forward.”

Comer scheduled the contempt vote for Thursday at 9 a.m., triggering the FBI to release a statement in response.

The statement omitted the bureau’s failure to comply with the subpoena to allow all members of the Oversight Committee to review the document. In Monday’s meeting, the FBI only permitted Comer and Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) to view the file.

“The FBI has continually demonstrated its commitment to accommodate the committee’s request, including by producing the document in a reading room at the U.S. Capitol,” the FBI said in a statement. “This commonsense safeguard is often employed in response to congressional requests and in court proceedings to protect important concerns, such as the physical safety of sources and the integrity of investigations. The escalation to a contempt vote under these circumstances is unwarranted.”

WATCH: Comer: Legislation Needed on Relatives of High-Ranking Government Officials Doing Business with Adversaries:

The FBI’s continued refusal to hand over the file met GOP criticism. Oversight Committee member Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) said the FBI refused to provide the document to the full committee because the informant’s information is incredibly damning.

“Just left meeting for House Oversight,” Luna (R-FL) posted on Twitter. “The @FBI is afraid their informant will be killed if unmasked, based on the info he has brought forward about the Biden family.”

“When we subpoena information there is a reason why. And we expect to get that information,” Comer told Hannity on Fox News. “The House Oversight Committee was created to have oversight over the federal government. ”

Democrats pushed back against Republicans’ contempt vote. Election Denier and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) told MSNBC it would be “lawlessness and disorder” to hold the FBI director in contempt.

Election Denier and House Democrat Leader Hakeem Jeffries says it would be "lawlessness and disorder" to hold the FBI director in contempt for failing to produce subpoenaed documents related to the Biden family corruption. pic.twitter.com/kaNHL2sWvi

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) June 6, 2023

Raskin told reporters the informant’s information “found no evidence” to corroborate the allegations against Joe Biden.

John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, denied the Biden family’s business schemes represent a national security threat despite admitting he had not read the House Oversight Committee report on the matter.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.