'Will come back to bite us all': GOP rep warns impeachment effort could 'hurt the Republicans'
Even though House Republicans have already voted to authorize an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden, one member of the Republican caucus is warning of potentially devastating political consequences in 2024 if the GOP marches ahead with its impeachment effort.
During a recent interview with NBC's Meet the Press, Rep. Don Bacon (R-Nebraska) – considered a more moderate member of the House Republican Conference – said impeaching Biden with no evidence will only hurt his party's chances in the next election cycle (Bacon ultimately voted in favor of authorizing the impeachment inquiry).
"If this is perceived as being a revenge impeachment or a politicized impeachment... it will hurt the Republicans," Bacon said Wednesday. "If we don’t handle this right and if it looks like we’re using it as a political weapon, it will come back to bite us all."
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?
Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio), another GOP moderate, echoed Bacon's remarks, saying he has so far seen nothing "that shows me that the president did anything wrong."
"We’ve gone through the process of indicting President Biden and the members of the Biden family, but we’ve not seen any of the evidence yet that gives weight to the indictment," Joyce, who also voted to authorize the inquiry, told NBC News.
According to the network, there are numerous Democrats and Republicans who remain skeptical of the House GOP's stated goal of impeaching the 46th president of the United States. While some think the process could drag well into 2024 as the effort to obtain documents and subpoenas drags out, others think there could be a swift vote to impeach Biden in the winter and spring months of 2024. And others hold a third view that House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) will refrain from ever bringing a vote to the floor due to a lack of evidence.
"One of the possibilities is that they don’t force a vote on articles of impeachment because they don’t have articles of impeachment," a senior House Democratic aide told NBC.
READ MORE: Newsmax host slams GOP's 'exercise in futility' saying impeachment can 'make Biden stronger'
Earlier this month, Rob Finnerty — a host on far-right network Newsmax — opined that the GOP's impeachment campaign could backfire, saying it would be "dead on arrival" in the Democratic-controlled US Senate and cost Republicans the White House next November.
