A political ethics watchdog group has requested information pertaining to GOP Representative James Comer's reported book deal, calling it "troubling" that he may be using it to capitalize on his committee's stalled impeachment inquiry of President Joe Biden.
Comer, a Republican who has represented Kentucky's 1st District since 2016, is the current chair of the House Oversight Committee. In the role, he has attempted to carry out the party's pledge to pursue impeachment proceedings against Biden.
Many observers have long criticized these efforts as a politicized bid to attack Biden in retaliation for the two impeachments of former President Donald Trump. The GOP's push, however, ultimately stalled out after failing to uncover any firm evidence of wrongdoing on Biden's part that would merit impeachment. Efforts to prove that the president illicitly profited off his son Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings never bore fruit, and, as was pointed out by critics, any such dealings, if they had occurred, would have most likely been during the president's time as a private citizen.
On Tuesday, it was alleged in a report from Axios that Comer was negotiating a book deal with at least one publisher for a book detailing the impeachment inquiry against Biden. The supposed deal first came to light when publisher HarperCollins posted a placeholder cover for a book called All the President's Money, written by Comer and to be published on September 10. Comer's office denied that such a deal was in the works, claiming that the posting was an error.
"The link was put up in error by HarperCollins," Comer spokesman Austin Hacker told Axios. "It was not authorized by Congressman Comer and he immediately requested it be taken down."
In response to reports about the alleged deal, watchdog group Congressional Integrity Project sent a letter to the Office of Congressional Ethics requesting information about any approval Comer has sought for the book and the status of said approvals.
"Throughout his entire investigation, Representative Comer has used his role as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee for personal and political gain," the letter from Kyle Herrig, group director, said. "He has been a frequent guest on conservative news channels pushing conspiracy theories and lies about his investigation and has used this impeachment inquiry to fundraise for his campaign. The new reporting about a potential book deal is troubling as it appears Representative Comer is planning on using his unique position as Oversight Chair to turn a profit."
Newsweek reached out to Comer's office via email on Tuesday evening for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
fairness meter
To Rate This Article
About the writer
Thomas Kika is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in upstate New York. His focus is reporting on crime and national ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
