Raskin Declares GOP’s Biden Impeachment ‘Essentially Ended’ With ‘Explosive’ Informant Revelation

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, told reporters Wednesday that the Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden “essentially ended” with their key witness being linked to Russian intelligence.

“I wanted to just start by restating the obvious, which is that the impeachment investigation, essentially ended yesterday in substance, if not in form with the explosive revelation that Mr. Smirnoff’s allegations about Ukrainian Burisma payments to Joe Biden were concocted along with Russian intelligence agents,” Raskin told reporters, adding:

And it appears like the whole thing is not only obviously false and fraudulent, but a product of Russian disinformation and propaganda.

House Republicans and many in conservative media made unsubstantiated claims by FBI informant Alexander Smirnov the center of their corruption allegations against President Biden. Smirnov alleged that President Biden and his son, Hunter, received $5 million payments from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma. The allegations were revealed in a 1023 form by Congressional Republicans despite the fact that FBI was never able to verify the allegations.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) said of Smirnov’s allegations that they were the “most corroborating evidence we have” and he called him a “ highly credible confidential human source.”

Raskin was speaking after a closed-door deposition with President Biden’s brother, James. “As for today’s transcribed interview with the brother of, President Biden, Mr. James Biden, we obviously, again, have heard nothing indicating that Joe Biden had anything to do with the business ventures of Hunter Biden or, James Biden,” Raskin said, concluding:

And, nothing has contradicted that basic understanding that we’ve had for many, many months now. So, that’s essentially where we are. Again, I’m restating my call to Chairman Comer, to Speaker Johnson to fold up the tent to this circus show. It’s really over at this point.

Watch above via C-SPAN.