AP Report Dives Into James Comer’s ‘Opaque’ Business Practices – Similar to What He’s Accusing the Bidens Of

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP Images

The Associated Press took a deep dive Thursday into House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY), his finances, and business practices.

Comer has long accused the Biden family of using shell companies and other financial schemes to hide income from what he has alleged is an illegal foreign “influence peddling” operation. Comer’s allegations have now grown into an official impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. The AP noted in its report titled, “The Republican leading the probe of Hunter Biden has his own shell company and complicated friends,” that Comer too has put some of his significant assets in a shell company.

The AP’s Brian Slodysko reported on the similarities in how Biden and Comer set up their personal finances, which Comer has claimed is evidence of illegality on the Biden family’s part.

“There are 6 acres (2.4 hectares) that he bought in 2015 and co-owns with a longtime campaign contributor that he has treated differently, transferring his ownership to Farm Team Properties, a shell company he co-owns with his wife,” Slodysko revealed in the report, not so subtly implying hypocrisy on Comer’s part.

“Comer has attacked some Biden family members, including the president’s son Hunter, over their use of shell companies that appear designed to obscure millions of dollars in earnings they received from shadowy middlemen and foreign interests,” Slodysko wrote, adding:

Such companies typically exist only on paper and are formed to hold an asset, like real estate. Their opaque structures are often designed to help hide ownership of property and other assets.

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But as Comer works to “deliver the transparency and accountability that the American people demand” through the GOP’s investigation, his own finances and relationships have begun to draw notice, too, including his ties to prominent local figures who have complicated pasts not all that dissimilar to some of those caught up in his Biden probe.

Slodysko adds that the AP investigation into Comer’s shell company found that it “functions in a similarly opaque way as the companies used by the Bidens, masking his stake in the land that he co-owns with the donor from being revealed on his financial disclosure forms.”

The article goes on to note that the donor in question has given Comer over $70,000 in contributions over the years — neither Comer nor the donor replied when asked to comment.

The article goes on to note that as a member of Congress Comer is obligated to “disclose all assets held by such companies that are worth more than $1,000.”

While the article doesn’t accuse Comer outright of hiding assets in the shell company, it does note that “After this story first published Thursday, Comer responded during an appearance on FOX News, stating that Farm Team Properties ‘has five different assets and lots of revenue.’ He didn’t reveal what those other assets may be. He also falsely claimed that the donor, Darren Cleary, ‘wasn’t a campaign contributor’ at the time the property was purchased. Cleary and his family have donated to Comer’s political campaigns since at least 2010, records show.”

Read the full article here from the AP.