Jill Biden tells Hillary Clinton ‘you are so loved’ in her first public White House
Jill Biden didn’t answer a question about husband Joe Biden‘s impeachment as she hosted an event with Hillary Clinton at the White House but assured the former secretary of state she was very ‘loved’ by the Democrats in the room.
The first lady smiled at a reporter who inquired about Speaker Kevin McCarthy‘s decision to open an impeachment inquiry against the president but didn’t stop to comment on the matter.
‘It’s an honor to welcome you back to the White House,’ Jill Biden told Hillary Clinton at the event in the East Room. And when the audience broke into whoops and cheers, the first lady to her: ‘You are so loved.’
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden remained in hiding on Tuesday, not appearing in public at the White House. The only event on his public schedule was his daily intelligence briefing although the public schedule doesn’t reflect all of the president’s activities for the day.
The White House called a lid shortly after 2 pm ET, meaning there would be no public activities by the president, who returned from his trip to India and Vietnam late Monday night. That was a few hours after McCarthy made his impeachment announcement.
The last Democratic president to be impeached was Clinton’s husband, Bill Clinton. Republican President Donald Trump was impeached twice. Neither president was convicted by the Senate.
‘You are so loved,’ Jill Biden told Hillary Clinton when she welcomed her back to the White House
Hillary Clinton was at the White House on Tuesday for her first public appearance at the presidential residence and workplace since her 2016 election loss to Donald Trump.
The former secretary of state did make a private appearance at the White House in 2021 for a dinner to celebrate then outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel early in Biden’s tenure.
Biden and Clinton were honoring the 2023 Praemium Imperiale Laureates. The Praemium Imperiale is a global arts prize awarded annually by the Japan Art Association for lifetime achievement in the arts. The Praemium Imperiale Laureates were first celebrated at the White House by President Clinton and Mrs. Clinton in 1994.
It was a Clinton-friendly crowd. Spotted in the audience was Clinton’s longtime aide Huma Abedin; former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a close friend of both Clintons; Capricia Marshall, who was an aide in the Clinton White House; and former Rep. Jerry Moran, a close Clinton ally.
Actress Debra Messing and ballet star Mikhail Baryshnikov were also at the event.
In her remarks, Jill Biden also reference the fact that Hillary Clinton will be returning to the classroom. The former secretary of state is teaching a class on global decision making at Columbia University.
The first lady, who teaches at Northern Virginia Community College, noted Clinton was now a ‘fellow educator.’
‘Good luck this semester,’ she told her.
Clinton thanked the first lady for hosting the event at the White House and paid tribute to her dual work as first lady and teacher.
She didn’t mention her own presidential race or former president Trump.
‘You know, Dr. Biden travels across the United States and around the world on behalf of the American people and I can say from some experience that is an exhilarating but exhausting job,’ Clinton said.
‘But throughout it all, she has remained dedicated to her first calling as an educator and mentor of young people. Now as she said, I’ve gone back to teaching recently, after 50 years, and I can attest it’s a hard enough job without being first lady,’ she said.
Jill Biden ignored a question from a reporter on the impeachment inquiry against Joe Biden
Hillary Clinton thanked Jill Biden for hosting the event
Laureates Robert Wilson, Winton Marsalis and Vija Celmins sit on stage at the 2023 Praemium Imperiale Laureates, a global arts prize awarded annually by the Japan Art Association for lifetime achievement in the arts
Earlier Tuesday, McCarthy made the shock announcement he would launch an impeachment inquiry on Biden, accusing the president of an ‘abuse of power and being involved in a ‘culture of corruption’ over son Hunter’s foreign business deals.
‘House Republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct,’ McCarthy said, speaking at the Capitol. ‘Taken together these allegations paint a picture of a culture of corruption.’
‘These are allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption. And they warrant further investigation by the House of Representatives. That’s why today I am directing our House committee to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden,’ he noted.
‘This logical next step will give our committees, the full power to gather all the facts and answers for the American public. That’s exactly what we want to know the answers.’
Republicans have charged Biden and his family made millions off shell companies Hunter Biden formed when his father was vice president. Hunter had business deals with an energy company in the Ukraine, received a discounted stake in a private-equity firm in China, and did consulting for a Romanian real-estate magnate.
The president has denied any involvement in his son’s business dealings. But Republicans claim at least a dozen Biden family members could be involved in a scheme to benefit financially from Biden’s public office.
House investigators are expected to issue subpoenas for the bank records of the president and his family. The GOP also claim Biden sat in on at least 24 calls with Hunter’s business partners and was referred to as ‘the big guy’ by Hunter’s business associates. And they say Joe Biden used pseudonyms to discuss his activities related to Ukraine with his son Hunter during his time as vice president.
An inquiry is the first step in the impeachment process. It is when evidence is gathered for the articles, or charges, of impeachment against an official.
It is a massive step with many pitfalls, including infuriating Republican moderates and many GOP senators, who are skeptical of the issue and causing friction with the White House as budget negotiations are underway. Congress faces a September 30th deadline to fund the government or it will shutdown.
President Joe Biden was not seen in public on Tuesday; he returned to the White House late Monday night (above) after a trip to India and Vietnam
Jill Biden and Hillary Clinton walk into the East Room of White House
Actress Debra Messing attended the arts event
Mikhail Baryshnikov was at the event for the 2023 Praemium Imperiale Laureates
McCarthy, however, is under intense pressure from the conservative wing of his party to make such a move, including threats from some of his own GOP lawmakers to remove him from the speakership.
The White House has repeatedly denied Biden has conducted any wrongdoing. The president himself has said he was not involved with any of Hunter’s business deals.
The White House called McCarthy’s move ‘extreme politics.’
‘House Republicans have been investigating the President for 9 months, and they’ve turned up no evidence of wrongdoing. His own Republican members have said so. He vowed to hold a vote to open impeachment, now he flip flopped because he doesn’t have support. This is extreme politics at its worst,’ White House spokesperson for oversight and investigations Ian Sams said in a statement.