Raskin cites 'Second Amendment rights' in jab at GOP during Hunter Biden hearing
Democrat says first son 'received no special treatment' during investigation
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., described Hunter Biden as a "rich guy exercising his Second Amendment rights" in a jab at House Republicans during their hearing Wednesday of IRS whistleblowers alleging misconduct in investigations into the Biden family.
The House Oversight Committee interviewed two IRS whistleblowers alleging political misconduct throughout the Hunter Biden investigation: special agent Joseph Ziegler, whose identity was revealed during the hearing, and his IRS supervisor Gary Shapley, who previously blew the whistle on alleged political influence surrounding prosecutorial decisions throughout the years-long federal probe into the president's son.
Raskin, the committee’s ranking Democratic member, described the Republicans as hypocritical during his opening statement and said Hunter Biden "received no special treatment."
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., listens as Joe Ziegler, Internal Revenue Service Whistleblower X, testifies before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability during a hearing regarding the criminal investigation into the Bidens on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
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Raskin accused "MAGA Republicans" of taking the side of "IRS agents from the deep state against a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney and a rich guy exercising his Second Amendment rights but now facing criminal gun charges and tax charges that they would call in any other circumstance purely technical."
"If my GOP colleagues think that the treatment of millions of tax scofflaws or even the handful who face criminal prosecution like Hunter Biden is too lenient, I invite them to join us Democrats in supporting the $80 billion in funding for the IRS that we passed in the Inflation Reduction Act last year," he continued. "This money will enable the IRS to make long overdue improvements in customer service, but will also enable the agency to restore lost capabilities and enforcement to identify and prosecute tax cheats."
Supervisory IRS Special Agent Gary Shapley, left, and IRS Criminal Investigator Joseph Ziegler are sworn in as they testify during a House Oversight Committee hearing related to the Justice Department's investigation of Hunter Biden, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
"But the very first thing House Republicans did this Congress was vote to rescind that funding while disparaging these future IRS employees who will do the same kind of work today's witnesses do," he added.
In addition to pleading guilty to two misdemeanor tax violations, Hunter Biden has agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion agreement regarding a separate charge of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of, or addicted to, a controlled substance.
IRS Criminal Investigator Joseph Ziegler testifies during a House Oversight Committee hearing related to the Justice Department's investigation of Hunter Biden, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. Ziegler has previously been known as "Whistleblower X." (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
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Ziegler, a gay Democrat with more than a dozen years serving within the IRS' criminal investigative division, appeared for the first time publicly Wednesday, while Shapley testified last month.
The whistleblowers allege that officials at the Justice Department, FBI and IRS interfered in the investigation into Hunter Biden, and that decisions in the case were influenced by politics.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
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