Republicans demand answers on shifting White House message on Biden’s role in Hunter’s business

EXCLUSIVE: Top House Republicans said Thursday there has been a “clear shift” in messaging from the White House on President Biden’s involvement in his son Hunter’s foreign business dealings, and are demanding to know whether that shift indicates the president knew more than he let on.

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, and Ways & Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith wrote a letter, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital, to White House Counsel Stuart Delery Thursday afternoon asking for clarity on this shifting message.

“President Biden and official White House spokespersons have said repeatedly that the president had no knowledge of his son’s business, nor did he discuss business with his son,” they wrote. But they pointed to a June 29 statement released by White House spokesman from the White House Counsel’s office Ian Sams, which they said seemed to move the goalposts.

On that day, Sams said: “As we have said many times before, the President was not in business with his son.”

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“This statement deviates from previous White House statements and brings forward concerns that the president knew of his son’s foreign business deals,” Stefanik, Jordan, Comer and Smith wrote.

Previously, the White House has said the president never spoke to his son about his business dealings and had no knowledge of them. The president has also denied ever having spoken to his son about his business dealings or being involved.

As a result of this apparent messaging shift, the four GOP lawmakers asked the White House to answer a series of questions, including whether the White House is “now admitting President Biden knew of and was involved in Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings,” how many of those foreign business deals he was “aware of,’ what President Biden’s involvement was and whether he was “financially compensated for his involvement.”

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The lawmakers pointed to their committee investigations into Biden’s “potential connections to certain international and domestic business transactions and practices, and misconduct by the Department of Justice in interring with the investigation into the tax crimes of Hunter Biden.”

They said the Biden family received payment “without any apparent legitimate services rendered,” which they say raises “significant concerns pertaining to ethics and national security laws.”

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The lawmakers also pointed to an uncovered WhatsApp message from 2017 in which Hunter Biden allegedly told a Chinese business associate from Chinese energy company CEFC that he and his father would ensure “you will regret not following my direction.”

“I am sitting here with my father, and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled,” Hunter Biden told Henry Zhao, the director of Chinese asset management firm Harvest Fund Management, in the message provided by IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley.

“And, Z, if I get a call or text from anyone involved in this other than you, Zhang or the chairman, I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction,” Hunter Biden added.

The lawmakers also asked if the Justice Department “has an open investigation regarding the uncovered WhatsApp message from Hunter Biden to a CEFC China Energy official.”

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“The American people must have confidence that the President of the United States is not compromised by foreign interests,” they wrote.

They gave the White House Counsel until next Thursday, July 27, to provide answers. The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.