News: Kevin Morris, the Hunter Biden associate who testified on Capitol Hill Thursday, told investigators he never expected anything in return from President Joe Biden after he loaned his son large sums of money.
“My only goal was and is to help my friend and client. In this country there is no prohibition against helping a friend in need with no ulterior motive,” Morris said in his opening statement, according to a copy we obtained.
“I did not and do not have any expectations of receiving anything from Hunter’s father or the Biden administration in exchange for helping Hunter, nor have I asked for anything from President Biden or his administration,” Morris added in his opening statement.
Morris testified before the House Oversight Committee in a closed-door session on Thursday.
Some background: Morris, a prominent entertainment lawyer in Los Angeles, met Hunter Biden in 2019 at a Joe Biden presidential fundraiser. Since then, Morris has spent nearly $5 million to financially assist Hunter Biden.
In Morris’ opening statement, he said he was “confident Hunter will repay these loans.”
House Republicans, of course, see the issue differently. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) said Morris’ “massive financial support to Hunter Biden raises ethical and campaign finance concerns for President Joe Biden.”
Comer argued in a statement after the interview that Morris’ interactions with Hunter Biden followed “a familiar pattern where Hunter Biden’s associates have access to Joe Biden himself.”
Republicans are investigating the extent to which associates of Joe Biden’s family members affected Biden’s decisions in elected office. To date, the House GOP hasn’t found any conclusive evidence Biden committed impeachable offenses.
Oversight Democrats, led by ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), have decried the GOP focus on Morris as particularly off base.
“It is hard to articulate how far removed this interview is from an impeachment inquiry for presidential high crimes and misdemeanors,” Raskin said in a statement.
In case you missed it: Hunter Biden will appear for a transcribed interview on Feb. 28, top GOP investigators announced on Thursday.
— Max Cohen
