Biden’s brother tells impeachment probe he kept family and business separate

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden’s brother on Wednesday told lawmakers pursuing an impeachment inquiry that their relationship had nothing to do with his business career, as a top Democrat said the probe is based on Russian disinformation and should be dropped.

In closed-door testimony, James Biden, 74, told investigators in the House of Representatives that he never asked Biden for official favors, or relied on his status as the sibling of a prominent politician to advance his interests.

He said Biden had no involvement or financial interests in any of the ventures he has pursued over the past 50 years. “Those who have said or thought otherwise were either mistaken, ill informed, or flat-out lying,” he said in a prepared statement.

Republicans have spent months investigating whether Biden improperly benefited from family members’ foreign business ventures, but have so far failed to turn up evidence of wrongdoing.

The inquiry is facing new headwinds as prosecutors have charged a former FBI informant with lying about the Bidens’ alleged business dealings in Ukraine, a central focus of the probe. Republicans have repeatedly cited that informant’s claims to bolster their accusations.

In a court filing on Tuesday, prosecutors said the informant had admitted to contacts with “officials associated with Russian intelligence.”