Comer Cancels Wray Contempt Vote After FBI Agrees to Share Document

Facts

• James Comer, the Republican chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said on Wednesday that he will reverse his plans to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress. The plans regarded the FBI's previous decision not to hand over unclassified information about Pres. Biden's family dealings.¹
• After Comer and the oversight panel's top-ranking Democrat, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, attended an FBI briefing behind closed doors on Monday, Comer claimed the FBI refused to hand over the document, saying that contempt of Congress hearings would start Thursday.²
• Comer was presented with the document in question during the Monday briefing — which he claims details an alleged $5M bribe involving then-Vice Pres. Biden and a foreign national. The agreement with the FBI will allow all members of the House Oversight panel to view the subpoenaed document, as well as two additional FBI documents.³
• Comer claims the bribery allegation is from a confidential FBI source who is "a trusted, highly credible informant” and has been working with the bureau for more than 10 years.⁴
• According to Raskin, the Dept. of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI — who called the upcoming contempt vote “unwarranted” as it “continuously demonstrated its commitment to accommodate the committee’s request” — previously "found no evidence" to validate the informant's allegations.⁵
• Biden and his family have repeatedly been accused of corruption by Republicans, with much of the focus being put on Biden's son, Hunter.⁶

Sources: ¹Roll Call, ²NPR Online News, ³CNN, ⁴Daily Wire, ⁵Washington Post, ⁶Daily Mail.

Narratives

• Republican narrative, as provided by Daily Caller. The FBI has demonstrated time and again that it cannot be trusted, and the agency needs to be held accountable for not being fully transparent in this investigation. The source in question is highly trusted by the FBI, so it’s strange that the agency is being so intransigent regarding Comer's concerns.
• Democratic narrative, as provided by Politico. Though Republicans continue to put on a show for their constituents, Comer is offering few specifics about these allegations. Even if the entire House GOP found Wray in contempt, it’s highly unlikely the DOJ would exercise its power to bring any criminal charges, making this whole fiasco an exercise in political theater.