The White House thinks a rise of overreaching MAGA Republicans in Congress could turn voters off.
Congressional Republicans are talking more openly about their desire to investigate every aspect of the Biden administration — and family — should they regain control of one or both houses of Congress.
Inside Biden world, aides and allies aren’t entirely displeased with the chatter.
There is a growing confidence in the White House that the House Republicans clamoring for a hodgepodge of investigations will overreach — and that their attempts will backfire politically, with key voters recoiling at blatant partisan rancor. Officials believe they can use GOP efforts to their political advantage heading into the 2024 cycle, betting a pro-Trump Republican conference fixated on Biden will elevate “ultra-MAGA Republicans” and provide a useful foil for Biden, allowing him to draw sharp contrasts between his governing and their obfuscating.
“Their sense for what will resonate with middle-of-the-road folks [is wrong]. It’s not going to be the kind of extremist performance that these hearings will likely end up being,” one White House ally said. “It might make the base feel good, and it’s going to give [Republican Reps.] Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene something awesome to say on their live stream, but it’s not going to be what convinces suburban women in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.”
The GOP’s investigative wish list is long, and it runs the gamut. But members have made it clear they believe digging into the business dealings of the president’s son, Hunter Biden, is at the top of the agenda — hoping it may yield a smoking gun on President Joe Biden. Also ranking high, a coronavirus “origins” probe that would put Anthony Fauci in the hot seat and a multi-committee dive into the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan last year that sparked bipartisan criticism.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is also expected to lead a sweeping dig that threatens to touch on every corner of the Justice Department and the FBI, reviving a long-running feud from the Trump era when federal law enforcement agencies were frequently viewed as villains by the former president and his allies.
“We’ve got a lot of opportunities. We’ve got a lot of work to do. Obviously, we’re going to have some high-profile committee hearings on the investigations dealing with Hunter Biden, dealing with [Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas, dealing with the origination of Covid,” said Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), who is expected to lead the Oversight Committee and beef up its staff if Republicans win back the majority.
Publicly, the White House has projected optimism about Democrats hanging onto the House this fall. But privately, aides have been preparing for the investigative onslaught that will come with a GOP takeover.
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Congressional Republicans are talking more openly about their desire to investigate every aspect of the Biden administration — and family — should they regain control of one or both houses of Congress.https://t.co/Z9RjtULXyB
— POLITICO (@politico) October 3, 2022
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