A concerning trend…
A former top aide to First Lady Jill Biden refused to answer questions regarding the House Oversight Committee’s probe into whether senior ex-White House aides covered up signs of former President Joe Biden’s mental decline.
Anthony Bernal, a former assistant to the president and senior advisor to the first lady, was compelled to a July 16 closed-door deposition after missing a previously agreed-upon interview date late last month.
However, his scheduled sit-down was over quickly. Bernal apparently pleaded the Fifth Amendment to the questions asked by House staffers, according to reports from Fox News.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky) confirmed Bernal invoked his right against self-incrimination in comments to reporters alongside committee member Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla) who was also present.
Both criticized Bernal and his lawyer for arguing the Fifth Amendment was not an admission of guilt, and Comer told reporters “all options are on the table” when asked whether the former president himself should be brought in.
“We’re gonna continue our investigation. I think that the American people are concerned,” Comer said.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky) is investigating allegations that Biden’s former top White House aides covered up signs of his mental and physical decline while in office, and whether any executive actions were commissioned via autopen without the president’s full knowledge.
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the longtime personal physician to former President Joe Biden, also invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a closed-door session with the House Oversight Committee last Wednesday. (RELATED: Biden’s Doctor Invokes Fifth Amendment Before Lawmakers)
O’Connor’s deposition lasted less than 30 minutes, with the doctor refusing to answer any questions after his name.
O’Connor’s lawyers argued at the time that it was not an admission of guilt. Rather, they were concerned the scope of the committee’s questioning could force him to violate patient-doctor confidentiality, risking his standing as a physician.
A House Oversight Committee aide pushed back: “Doctor-patient objection would have meant he would have stayed and answered questions that didn’t implicate such privilege. Instead, he took the Fifth to all and any potential questions.”
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
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Not sure how the Fifth applies when it’s not a trial, but it is an admission that an answer will incriminate you, so you’re guilty of SOMETHING.
“Rather, they were concerned the scope of the committee’s questioning could force him to violate patient-doctor confidentiality, risking his standing as a physician.”
That is a red herring, and they know it.
Dr. O’Connor already publicly commented on President Joe Biden’s health extensively and on many occasions. If doing so was a breach of patient-doctor confidentiality, that ship sailed a LONG time ago. But of course it isn’t. Every President’s doctor does this as they work for the American People and he is there to ensure that the President can carry out his duties, or if not, say so in order for the Constitutional order of succession, whether temporary or permanent, can take place.
It’s just a smoke screen for what is true. The doctor has committed crimes and conspired with others to commit those crimes. The 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination is the real issue here, and asserting this right essentially says, yes I committed crimes, but you have to prove it in a court of law and I’m not going to help you build the case.