It comes as the government inches closer to a shutdown

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Good morning,

It’s National Coffee Day! Pour an extra Cup of Joe and raise your mug to the first full weekend of fall. ☕️

It’s Friday and it feels so good!

Mosheh, Jill, & Courtney

🗞 BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY HEARING

Republicans promised they would try to impeach President Biden as soon as they took control of the House last November. Well, their time has finally come.

The House Oversight Committee held the first public hearing of their impeachment inquiry into President Biden yesterday, aiming to “provide accountability” for leaders in Washington. Four witnesses testified in a hearing that was at times both chaotic and anticlimactic. So what did they find?

REMIND ME HOW WE GOT HERE
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) launched the impeachment inquiry on September 12, saying it was the “next logical step” to gather all the facts and answers.

What they’re looking for:

Bank records: House Republicans are trying to prove there are links tying President Biden to his son Hunter’s controversial, foreign business deals. The main allegation is that when Biden was Vice President, he knew about, was involved in, and profited from Hunter Biden's business deals in Ukraine and China.
Hunter’s plea deal: Republicans are also looking into the Justice Department investigation into Hunter Biden’s taxes and gun use that began in 2018. Republicans point to the DOJ’s plea deal (which ended up collapsing) as proof that Hunter Biden received preferential treatment because of who his father is.

MEET THE WITNESSES
Three were selected by the GOP, and one was selected by the Democrats, respectively:

Jonathan Turley: A law professor at George Washington University. He was also a witness for Republicans when House Democrats launched their first impeachment inquiry into President Trump in 2019.
Eileen O’Connor: A former assistant attorney general at the Justice Department's Tax Division under President George W. Bush. She is now an attorney in private practice.
Bruce Dubinsky: a forensic accountant who “has served as an expert witness over 100 times and has testified in over 80 trials, including trials involving criminal and civil financial fraud," according to Oversight Republicans.
Michael J. Gerhardt: A law professor at the University of North Carolina. He also testified during Trump's first impeachment, and was a joint Democratic-Republican witness in Clinton's 1998 impeachment.

WHERE’S THE EVIDENCE?
In his opening statement, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) said the panel had "a mountain of evidence" showing Joe Biden used his official government role for his family's gain. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) called it “a tale as old as time. Politician takes action that makes money for his family and then he tries to conceal it.”

Witnesses say… not so much. They admit that while Hunter Biden's finances are muddy and do raise questions into potentially illegal activities — they do not see hard evidence of impeachable offenses. They argue more bank records from Joe and Hunter Biden are needed to determine whether a crime might have been committed.

"We have all kinds of smoke, maybe no fire, but there’s smoke.” House Oversight Committee member Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI) said the allegations against the Biden family are serious, but acknowledged more dots need to be connected.

CRUCIAL TIME FOR CONGRESS
The hearing comes as lawmakers try to reach a deal to fund the government before it shuts down Saturday night. A shutdown would be a major blow to the economy, would halt paychecks for federal employees, and will likely disrupt services for millions of Americans (we’re looking at you, airlines).

✔︎ Mo News Reality Check: We expect Republicans to march on with their impeachment inquiry and continue their hunt for more information. No additional hearings have been scheduled. But it is near impossible, with the evidence presented at this point, that this inquiry will lead to President Biden’s removal from office.

As Reuters points out— It is unclear if House Republicans, who have a narrow 221-212 majority, would have the votes at the end of the inquiry to support actual impeachment. But even if that vote succeeded, it is highly unlikely that the Senate, where Democrats hold a 51-49 majority, would vote to remove Biden from office.

⏳ SPEED READ

🚨NATION

📌 US mortgage rates climb to 7.31%, hitting their highest level in nearly 23 years. (CNN)

📌 Appeals court will not delay Donald Trump civil fraud trial. (REUTERS)

📌 Senate unanimously passes formal dress code. (CNN)

📌 Jason Billingsley arrested in death of Baltimore tech CEO Pava LaPere. (WASHINGTON POST)

🌎 AROUND THE WORLD

📌 Blinken meets Indian foreign minister as row between India and Canada simmers. (YAHOO NEWS)

📌 Taiwan unveils first domestically made submarine. (FOX)

📌 Sweden's leader turns to the military for help as gang violence escalates. (ABC NEWS)

📌 Armenians ‘lose motherland’ in blow to Russia’s influence abroad. (FINANCIAL TIMES)

📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH

📌 National Coffee Day deals: Free drinks at Dunkin’, Krispy Kreme and more. (CNN)

📌 GameStop names Ryan Cohen as CEO effective immediately, won’t receive salary. (CNBC)

📌 Smithsonian to get some of the asteroid sample that NASA brought back. (WASHINGTON POST)

📌 Epic Games is eliminating 16% of its workforce and selling Bandcamp. (CNBC)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce inspire viral prank on TikTok. (NBC)

📌 Michael Gambon, Dumbledore in the ‘Harry Potter’ Films, dies at 82. (NY TIMES)

📌 Britney Spears gets police welfare check after disturbing knife video. (FOX)

📌 Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield has brain cancer, sources say (WCVB)

🎉 CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN WEEKEND

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: Jill: Murdaugh Murders Season 2 on Netflix; Mosheh: Baby Olivia sleeping
WHAT WE’RE READING: Jill: Corporate America Promised to Hire a Lot More People of Color. It Actually Did. ~ Bloomberg; Mosheh: Goodnight Moon
WHAT WE’RE EATING: Jill: Coffee (for National Coffee Day); Mosheh: Feeding Olivia bottles.