House Oversight Committee Calls for Unrestricted Access to Biden’s Ukraine and Burisma Emails
The House Oversight Committee has submitted a request to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for unrestricted special access to former Vice President Joe Biden’s emails regarding Ukraine and Ukrainian energy company Burisma Holdings. This move is part of an ongoing investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings while Joe Biden was serving as vice president.
In a letter to NARA, the Committee stated that it is looking into President Biden’s meetings and communications with certain family members and their business associates during his time as vice president. The Committee believes that the Biden Vice Presidential Records Collection, which is currently published on NARA’s website, contains valuable information for their investigation.
Specifically, the Committee is requesting access to the records under the Presidential Records Act (PRA) related to email exchanges between Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden regarding Burisma and Ukraine. The records that have been made available to the public have been redacted, and the Committee is seeking unrestricted access to these documents.
The Committee is particularly interested in documents that include Joe Biden’s pseudonyms, such as Robin Ware, Robert L. Peters, and JRB Ware. They have cited an email from May 2016 as an example, where then-Vice President Biden’s assistant mentioned a phone call with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and upcoming events. Hunter Biden was copied on this email.
Furthermore, the Committee is also requesting any documents that involve Hunter Biden and his former business associates, Devon Archer and Eric Schwerin. Archer, who served on the board of Burisma alongside Hunter Biden, testified before the Committee in July about his business dealings with Joe Biden’s son. Schwerin, as the president of Rosemont Seneca Partners, also had connections to Hunter Biden’s business ventures.
The Committee is additionally seeking draft versions of a speech that Joe Biden delivered to the Ukrainian parliament in December 2015. This speech took place shortly after Hunter Biden allegedly made calls to individuals at Burisma on behalf of the company’s executives. The Committee wants to review the speech for any potential mention or lack thereof regarding Burisma and related individuals.
The investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings has been a source of controversy, with allegations of potential conflicts of interest and corruption. Republican Kentucky Representative James Comer, Chair of the House Oversight Committee, emphasized the importance of obtaining unredacted records to further explore these allegations.
Joe Biden has consistently denied any involvement or knowledge of his son’s business dealings, stating that there was a clear separation between his family’s business ventures and his duties as vice president. However, evidence has surfaced suggesting interactions between Joe Biden and his son’s business associates.
The National Archives and Records Administration is currently working on its response to the Committee’s request for access to the records. As the investigation continues, both critics and supporters of the Biden family will be closely watching for any new developments that may shed light on the extent of their involvement in foreign business dealings.
