WASHINGTON — On Capitol Hill, House Republicans have been all-in Wednesday on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s announcement of an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. Down Pennsylvania Avenue, the president was holding forth on the White House on the significance of bipartisanship in preventing most cancers - and ignoring shouted questions on impeachment.

It was a transparent signal of Biden’s broader reelection pitch: the concept if he merely does his job and governs, Americans will see the outcomes and reward him with 4 extra years. Never thoughts all that pesky impeachment discuss throughout city.

Just an hour earlier, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had dismissed the inquiry as a “political stunt” and deflected questions concerning the particulars to the White House Counsel’s Office.

House Republicans? “We think they should work with us on legitimate issues - things that actually matter to the American people,” she mentioned.

The we’re-all-better-than-this angle is central to the White House technique for countering impeachment proceedings being launched forward of the 2024 election by Republicans who're attempting to hyperlink Biden to the enterprise dealings of his son, Hunter. This because the GOP tries to shift consideration away from Donald Trump’s personal authorized troubles.

The White House has been making ready for a possible impeachment primarily since Republicans received management of the House within the November elections. It has roughly two dozen employees members within the counsel’s workplace detailed to the matter. The new chief counsel, Ed Siskel, is a former Obama administration legal professional who helped craft the response to the congressional investigations into the 2012 Benghazi assault that killed 4 Americans, together with the U.S. ambassador.

The White House impeachment playbook to date has been: Dismiss. Compartmentalize. Scold.

That is, shrug off the costs as baseless, keep targeted on coverage, go away the impeachment query to the legal professionals and chide those that give a lot credence to all of it.

After McCarthy’s announcement this week that the House would transfer ahead towards impeachment, the counsel’s workplace despatched a memo to information leaders scolding them over protection to date.

“It’s time for the media to ramp up its scrutiny of House Republicans for opening an impeachment inquiry based on lies,” the memo mentioned.

Still, the impeachment inquiry is a difficult matter for Biden as a result of the factor is so private, targeted on his relationship together with his 53-year-old son, a supply of ache and pleasure whose questionable selections have landed the president right here.

The White House has mentioned that Joe Biden was not concerned in his son’s enterprise affairs. And to date, regardless of months of investigations, Republicans have unearthed no important proof of wrongdoing by the elder Biden, who spoke usually to his son and as vice chairman did cease by a enterprise dinner together with his son’s associates. Hunter Biden isn't a public determine. Hunter Biden’s attorneys are on message, too.

“Rather than waste time and taxpayer dollars on this political sideshow, Mr. McCarthy should lead the Congress to do real work of governing,” Abbe Lowell mentioned in an announcement. “Americans deserve better.”

Before now, many of the questions from reporters fielded by the president on the subject have been a couple of prison investigation into Hunter’s enterprise dealings working parallel to the House investigations. His responses have been temporary and upbeat: He’s achieved nothing mistaken; we help him.

While the general White House technique isn't anticipated to alter, this week’s announcement of a proper inquiry shifts the dynamics considerably. It can be more durable to simply shrug off questions. And the Biden reelection marketing campaign is beginning to blast out fundraising emails and texts denouncing the probe.

Even the donation pitches replicate the broader technique. An e mail from Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday made this plea to potential donors: “It’s clear: They’re going to throw everything they have at Joe, because they know they can’t run against our record. If you’re waiting for a moment to show your support for him, trust me when I say: This is it.”

Threats of impeachment was uncommon so there’s not a lot foundation for comparability. While Trump was twice impeached, neither was about private conduct. The inquiry into Biden is extra akin to the late Nineteen Nineties impeachment of President Bill Clinton led by House Speaker Newt Gingrich. In that endeavor, the White House stonewalled, making then-special counsel Lanny Davis the general public face of its response. By his account, it labored.

“Take a look at how things went for Speaker Gingrich and the GOP House members after the midterm congressional elections in November 1998,” Davis emailed Wednesday. “They lost five seats to the Democrats, defying U.S. history.”

He predicted McCarthy would undergo the identical destiny, praising the White House response to date.

“The Biden White House has begun to speak forcefully to rebut the misinformation and false innuendo that is the only basis Speaker McCarthy and House leaders can express as the basis of a House inquiry.”

Andrew Jackson was the opposite president impeached. Trump is the one president to face it twice - acquitted each occasions - and he's the primary to face prison costs in 4 separate indictments, together with for attempting to overturn the 2020 election he misplaced to Biden.

Rep. Ted Lieu, a prime Democrat, mentioned Wednesday there aren't any similarities between the Democratic impeachments of Trump and the Republicans’ pursuit of Biden.

“We had mountains of evidence,” he mentioned. “That’s why articles of impeachment … were passed. and that’s why we had a bipartisan vote of U.S. senators to convict Donald Trump.” Lieu added that whereas the Democratic majority didn’t finally have sufficient help to take away Trump from workplace, they have been capable of get a handful of members from the opposite aspect to hitch them.

McCarthy mentioned that House investigations to date “paint a picture of a culture of corruption” across the Biden household as Republicans probe the enterprise dealings of Hunter Biden from earlier than the Democratic president took workplace.

“These are allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption, and they warrant further investigation by the House of Representatives,” McCarthy mentioned on the Capitol.

Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., says he doesn’t need the inquiry to final into election season. “I hope not. I hope we can get it through as quickly as possible. I’m an impatient person. We wouldn’t have to do impeachment inquiry if this administration would cooperate with us.”

As impeachment discuss swirled elsewhere, Biden and first girl Jill Biden gathered with prime administration officers on Wednesday afternoon to speak about battling most cancers, one of many president’s prime targets. Their elder son, Beau, died of mind most cancers.

After the Bidens completed talking, reporters erupted with questions concerning the impeachment inquiry. Four increase mics dangled above the desk, able to catch any response from the president.

He didn’t reply.

• Associated Press Writers Chris Megerian, Stephen Groves, Farnoush Amiri and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

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