ANALYSIS: McCarthy Gambles on Impeachment Probe Amid Government Shutdown Fight

The speaker must face down hardliners in his own caucus and a united Senate to create a conservative appropriations win and avoid a government shutdown.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on July 27, 2023. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) took a calculated risk by opening an impeachment investigation on President Joe Biden in the midst of a contentious battle over appropriations.

The Sept. 12 announcement drew harsh condemnation from Democrats. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who called it “politics on steroids.” White House spokesperson Ian Sams said the inquiry represented “extreme politics at its worst.”