Hunter Biden was combative, but confirmed key details from impeachment evidence, transcript shows

The House Oversight Committee on Thursday released the full transcript of Hunter Biden’s long-awaited testimony in the ongoing impeachment inquiry into his father.

In his opening statement, Hunter Biden insisted that his father had nothing to do with his business ventures, one of the central pillars of the House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.

“I am here today to provide the committees with the one uncontestable fact that should end the false premise of this inquiry: I did not involve my father in my business, not while I was a practicing lawyer, not in my investments or transactions, domestic or international, not as a board member, and not as an artist, never,” Hunter Biden said.

You can read the full transcript here. 

It shows in his testimony the first son was often combative and pushed back on questions from investigators about any alleged involvement by his father in his business dealings, ranging from phone calls to meeting with business associates.

“Devon Archer testified that you also placed your father on speakerphone during a meeting with Jonathan Li. Do you recall that?” investigators asked.

“No, I don't recall it. Is there a specific time? I was with Jonathan Li for a number of times over the course of 10 years, and as I've said -- well, go ahead,” Biden said.

“Did you ever place your father on speakerphone with any of your business associates?” they asked.

“Over the course of the last 30 years when speakerphone was invented on a cell phone? I'm certain my dad has called me. My dad calls me like I'm sure a lot of your parents do or a lot of you do with your children, and if I'm with people that are friends of mine, I'll have him say hi,” Biden said.

Hunter Biden then confirmed that Devon Archer’s testimony that he put his father on speakerphone between 10 and 20 times during their 15 year business relationship was likely accurate.

When asked why he would put his father on speakerphone, Biden said it was “nothing nefarious literally.”

“I'm surprised my dad hasn't called me right now, and if he did, I would put him on speakerphone to say hi to you and to Congressman Raskin and everybody else in the room,” he quipped.

In other instances, Biden failed to recall important meetings or communications, despite remembering key details about those very interactions.

When investigators asked him if he remembered sending the now-infamous text message to one of his Chinese partners invoking his father’s name and demanding his company fulfill its end of the deal, Biden could not recall sending the message, but claimed his father was not sitting next to him.

“Does he have a recollection of sending the message?” investigators asked.

“And I do not,” Biden answered.

“My father was not sitting next to me. My father had no awareness. My father had no awareness of the business that I was doing,” he added later.

In another instance, investigators asked about an email where one of Hunter Biden’s associates listed the equity split for a joint venture between the Biden team and CEFC China Energy. In the split, 10% was set aside for Hunter to hold for “the big guy.”

“Do you recall responding to Mr. Gilliar's message about the 10 held by H for the big guy?” investigators asked.

“I do not,” Biden answered.

After he was presented with evidence that he had, in fact, responded to the email chain, the first son said that he was “not sure [he] ever fully read” it.

“All I know is that my response has nothing to do with my father. It has absolutely zero -- my response doesn't mention any additional determination of percentages that would go to my father or anything,” he added.

After the first son’s testimony, Chairman of the Oversight Committee James Comer said the inquiry would continue, with the next step being a public hearing to address the apparently “contradictory” statements from different witnesses.

“I think this was a great deposition for us. It proved several bits of our evidence that we've been conducting throughout this investigation,” Comer told reporters, according to an Oversight Committee post on X following the hearing.

In the transcript, Biden confirmed he received a $250,000 wire from Jonathan Li—who joined with Hunter Biden and his associates in forming BHR Partners, a private equity firm that was backed by several Chinese state owned enterprises, including the Bank of China.  He also confirmed the receipt of $3 million from State HK Limited—an entity associated with CEFC—which was subsequently divided between the partners and other Biden family members, including his uncle, James Biden.

“But there were also some contradictory statements that I think need further review,” Comer added. “So, I think that the public hearing hopefully will clear up some discrepancies between some of the statements that were made between some of the associates and what we heard today.”