House GOP Probes Hunter’s Art Deals

House Republicans are demanding answers about Hunter Biden’s anonymous art sales as they prepare to dig deeper into the business dealings of the president’s son.

House Oversight James Comer, Chairman of the Committee (R-KY), sent a letter Wednesday, Hunter Biden’s art dealer, George Berges, asking for information about the younger Biden’s sudden success in the art world.

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“Despite being a novice artist, Hunter Biden received exorbitant amounts of money selling his artwork, the buyers’ identities remain unknown, and you appear to be the sole record keeper of these lucrative transactions,” Comer wrote to Berges, who has sold Hunter Biden’s paintings at his New York City gallery.

Comer asked Berges to provide all communications between his gallery and the White House, as well as all documents related to the high-dollar sales of Hunter Biden’s artwork.

Comer mentioned in his letter that the pieces had sold for as high as $225,000, citing media reports.

Republicans have raised concerns since 2021 that foreign nationals or other individuals could buy Hunter Biden’s art with the sole intention of ingratiating themselves with the president’s family.

Art critics have largely panned Hunter Biden’s works; many have said the prices Berges has supposedly charged for the paintings far exceed their artistic value.

“George Berges may be bluffing and talking up Biden’s prices,” Ben Davis is a well-known art critic. told Politico In 2021. “There’s no science to such things. But it is absolutely, 100% certain that what is being sold is the Biden name and story.”

Berges has been asked by House Republicans for information before, but this was before they took over subpoena power.

Berges stated that New York Post In December, he ignored a call from Comer’s staff shortly after the midterm elections, as Republicans prepared to assume the House majority.

He also stated that he had. “hope that we don’t politicize something that is positive and good” in Hunter Biden’s fledgling art career.

Facing scrutiny in 2021 ahead of Hunter Biden’s first gallery show, the White House said it had established an ethics framework to insulate the president from potential impropriety.

According to the White House both the president and artist will remain anonymous as the buyers, it was not disclosed by them. Berges had reportedly pledged to reject any bid on Hunter Biden’s artwork that he found suspicious.

The website for Berges’s art gallery appeared to be offline on Wednesday, although pictures of Hunter Biden’s art remained on the gallery’s social media page.

Berges was also asked by Comer to submit a transcription interview. This interview was requested by the art dealer before February 15.

House Democrats set a precedent of securing the Justice Department’s cooperation in enforcing congressional subpoenas; two former aides to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro, were indicted for contempt of Congress.

Bannon was convicted because he refused to comply with a congressional order. Navarro is still being prosecuted.

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Whether the Justice Department would enforce Republicans’ requests for help as aggressively remains unclear.

Biden’s administration maintains that House GOP investigations are largely political and has thus downplayed their credibility.