House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer on Tuesday said “financially illiterate” Democrats were spreading a fake news story about the congressman’s own finances to try to discredit his investigation into President Biden’s family financial dealings.
“You look like a Smurf here, just going around in all this stuff,” Mr. Comer told Rep. Jared Moskowitz after the Florida Democrat compared Mr. Comer’s land dealings with allegations that Mr. Biden’s family members used his brand to enrich themselves with payments from foreign companies.
The brouhaha broke out at a hearing that was supposed to look at wasteful government property holdings. Mr. Moskowitz criticized the hearing, saying it wasn’t what was on his constituents’ minds.
Then he went after Mr. Comer, who was chairing the hearing, pointing to a Daily Beast article last week that said the Kentucky Republican used a shell company to swap land and channel $200,000 to his brother. That’s significant because Mr. Comer is investigating a $200,000 loan James Biden made to his brother several years back while President Biden wasn’t in office.
Mr. Comer said the article — and Democrats who are repeating it — are “dumb, financially illiterate people.”
He said what happened was his father died, leaving some land. Mr. Comer’s brother didn’t have money to maintain it, so Mr. Comer bought the land, which accounted for the payment Democrats have questioned.
“They’re so financially illiterate that you think that because something says LLC it’s a shell company,” the congressman said. “This company, which I financially disclose, has properties, OK? It manages over 1,000 acres of land for hunting purposes. It owns different properties. I’m one of the largest landowners in my home area, OK? I went to the bank and I borrowed money and I bought that land. I didn’t get wires from Romania, China. My family doesn’t get wires.”
Mr. Comer then called Rep. Dan Goldman, a New York Democrat who has joined Mr. Moskowitz in the criticism, “Mr. Trust Fund.”
Mr. Moskowitz then got defensive. He first tried to shut down Mr. Comer, saying the exchange was coming out of his own time for questions. When Mr. Comer stopped the clock to continue the fight, Mr. Moskowitz said he was just raising questions.
“Why should they believe what you’re saying?” the Democrat demanded. “We don’t know if that’s what you’re doing or not. We don’t know.”
“You’ve already been proven a liar, Mr. Moskowitz,” Mr. Comer retorted.
“Your word means nothing” Mr. Moskowitz replied. “This seems to have gotten under your skin. I think the American people have lots of questions, Mr. Chairman. Perhaps you should sit for a deposition.”
Mr. Comer said he would pay for a ticket for Mr. Moskowitz to go to Kentucky and conduct an investigation.
The Kentuckian also offered to sit down with James Biden and Hunter Biden, the president’s son, and “we can go over our LLCs.”
