Joe Biden Investigation: Second Person Pleads the Fifth to House Oversight

Newsweek

5 days ago

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A former top aide to Jill Biden invoked the Fifth Amendment on Wednesday, becoming the second individual to do so in House Republicans' investigation into former President Joe Biden's mental fitness and alleged use of an autopen for official documents.
Anthony Bernal, Jill Biden's former chief of staff, declined to answer questions during a closed-door deposition with the House Oversight Committee, citing his constitutional right against self-incrimination.
"Well, unfortunately, that was quick," said Committee Chair Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., after the interview ended. "I believe the American people are concerned. They're concerned that there were people making decisions in the White House that were not only unelected but no one to this day knows who they were."
Bernal, who was accompanied by attorney Jonathan Su, a former deputy White House counsel, did not speak to reporters as he entered or exited the Capitol hearing room. Su issued a statement to the committee emphasizing that invoking the Fifth is "not evidence of wrongdoing."
Joe Biden, in a recent New York Times interview, dismissed the GOP probe as legally dubious and defended his decision-making in office: "I consciously made all those decisions," he said, referring to his clemency-related actions.
The Oversight Committee has sought testimony from nearly a dozen former Biden aides, including former White House chiefs of staff Ron Klain and Jeff Zients, senior advisers Mike Donilon and Anita Dunn, and counselor Steve Ricchetti, among others. On Tuesday, Comer subpoenaed Annie Tomasini, a former deputy chief of staff, to appear on July 18, making her the third former Biden official formally summoned.
Democrats have dismissed the investigation as political posturing.
"They still look like losers," said Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, who attended Bernal's deposition. But Republicans argue the inquiry has become a pressing political issue, especially with the 2024 election on the horizon.
"This is corruption at the highest level," said Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla. "If you cannot answer a simple question about Joe Biden's capabilities, then that further demonstrates that he was not in charge of his administration."
Donalds also said, "Every member of the Biden administration, at this point, needs to be subpoenaed," adding that this includes Vice President Kamala Harris and First Lady Jill Biden.
Comer did not rule out calling in family members.
"We're going to bring in everyone. We're moving up the line," he said. "We've started with the lower level staffers that we think were the ones that actually put the documents in the autopen and pressed power. Now we're moving up to the people that we think told the staffers to use the autopen."
He concluded, "So we'll see where that takes us. But I think the possibility is very good that we'll be asking members of the family to come in."
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.