"washington journal" and find scheduling information for c-span's tv networks and c-span radio. plus a variety of compelling podcasts. c-span now is available at the apple store and google play. scan the q.r. code to download free or visit our website c-span.org/c-spannow. your front row seat to washington any time, any where. >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. we are funded by these television companies. and more. including comcast. >> you think this is just a community certaintier? no. it's way more than that. >> comcast is farther tpherg with a thousand community certainties to create wi-fi enabled places so low-income families can get the tools they need to be ready for everything. >> comcast supportc-span as a public service, along with thes other television providers. giving y a front row seat to democracy. host: alex thompson jw

on the day joe biden is set to testify behind closed doors on capitol hill. alex thompson, who will hunter biden be talking to and what will he be answering questions on? guest: house oversight and house judiciary committees. they subpoenaed him. you may remember dramatics over the last few months about hunter saying he would only testify publicly, and he was told, too bad, he would be in content of congress. he showed up and will testify now. they did not pull contempt of congress, but he did not agree to the private behind closed doors deposition. the reason why comber wants to do that is because you have real litigators, real lawyers going in. but they will really ask him about his about his business dealings. more specifically, did his dad

ever change policy, u.s. policy, as vice president to benefit hunter and the family financially. host: is there a way for us to find out what he gets asked about behind closed doors and will we know eventually? guest: absolutely. we will get transcripts, which usually take a little bit. in this case, i think the transcripts may come out within 24 hours. you will have a full transcript. it will not be recorded, that was part of the negotiations. no videotapes, and as far as i am aware, no audio. host: as members continue to show up, we will show you the stand up here, we're waiting for hunter biden to maybe show up on capitol hill. jamie raskin talking with reporters there. if hunter biden shows up ahead of this deposition, we will go here what he has to say. alex thompson, jamie raskin is a democrat in committee, will there be democrat and republican lawyers there?

will they go back and forth or do we know? guest: there definitely will be democrats. i just came from an event with one of the democrats that will be there and there were democrat lawyers. you can read in other transcripts of interviews with james biden, his brother, and others. there is a lot of clashing between the two sides. i expect this is the "star" witness of the gop, and i imagine it will get that way behind closed doors. host: at the top of the hour here, we will quickly go over to the supreme court, maybe a little bit after 10:00, for that bump stock case. we will let you hear oral arguments. until then, your calls with alex thompson on this hunter biden deposition. democrats, [video clip] -- democrats, (202) 748-8000.

democrats -- republicans (202) , 748-8001. independents (202) 748-8002. ,talk about alexander smirnoff and how that impacts today. guest: alexander smirnov, there has been a lot of talk, especially with republicans, over an fbi informant that it is alleged that joe biden had taken a $5 million bribe from burisma, the energy company hunter biden was on the board of in ukraine. because he was a longtime fbi informant, a lot of republicans, james comber, jim jordan, really took this as a verifying a lot of what they had been alleging about the ties between joe biden and hunter biden's business dealings. special counsel david white you may remember, special counsel in charge of the investigation into hunter biden, he recently filed

and indictment against smirnov alleging he lied to the fbi about this $5 million bribe. he has shown no love for hunter biden or for the biden's in general. he is currently indicting hunter biden in two different municipalities, delaware and california. the fact he came out and said that this man lied has really undermined a lot of the gop case because so many republican lawmakers are citing him as one of these corroborating factors. host: before calls, i want to know that you interviewed hunter biden recently. what was that about, and how long ago? guest: it was this past month. you have obviously heard a lot about burisma, and i have covered it, at about it and some of the things he is alleged of doing, not filing taxes, a gun

felony. in this conversation, i wanted to talk about how he got sober. because if you look at the timeline,, it is sort of a shock that he has stayed sober. the reason we know he stayed sober is because he swore in the court that his sobriety date was june 1, 2019, and another judge in september said that he had been tested in outside authority and was testing negative. like, huh, that is interesting, given where we know he was. it is an extraordinary story. if his last drink was the day before his dad's campaign kickoff in 2019, that was the day after dr. biden got married to a woman he had only known for a week. the fact his father was jumping into the presidential fray while his son was really in a spiral of a crack cocaine addiction and

alcoholism, and he did not even know where hunter was some of the time, and the fact that he was able to pull himself out of this nosedive -- everything else was swirling, having your entire digital life spread across the internet for your father's political enemies, and then the fact that you are facing jail time, and having all of this sort of tabloid frenzy. the fact he was able to do that. so we talked about how he got sober. the thing that was so interesting to me is he sees his sobriety not just something for himself, but he sees it tied with the country now because he knows a relapse would not only be a feeding frenzy on the right, but it would be devastating to his dad. hunter biden is the only living

person from that 1972 living person from that 1972 accident that was such -- so he clings to him. a hunter relapse would really just be devastating for his father's psyche, and he knows that. host: axios.com to read more about that. taking your phone calls with alex thompson until our program ends this morning. william is up first, birmingham, alabama, line for democrats. go ahead. caller: good morning. first, i would like to say james comer -- [indiscernible] there was a bunch of lighting. -- there was a bunch of lying. c-span showing jamie raskin. do you think anybody will say president joseph robinette biden was going for the okie dokie from russia or china? how stupid are the american people?

and you interviewed hunter biden, thank god for that. there are folks addicted to drugs, and we pray for their healing. we do not demonize them and put them down, we pray for them. i do not think republicans will find anything against joseph robinette biden. [indiscernible] on social security and everything else in this country. host: we get your point. alex thompson, what do you want to pick up on there? guest: this frustration with james comer is interesting. james comer really frustrates some of his own republican colleagues now, because in several instances, he has overstated, or misstated, what the evidence is. part of this is because he has really gone on a lot of right wing media, a lot of newsmax,

shows with benny johnson, and stuff, and they sort of lead him to the water, and he has basically repeatedly sort of gone over his skis. to the point now that a lot of his own colleagues feel he has over promised and under delivered. host: republicans gone over there skis on alex smirnov? guest: exactly, not just james comer but chuck grassley, jordan, there are many examples. you can go throughout fox and newsmax and them saying this corroborates their entire account. part of the reason is because smirnov was a longtime fbi informant, for a decade, and republicans knew that. host: cindy in ohio, republican. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. my main point is this all started because joe biden lied.

he told the truth that he had some dealings with his son, if he did that from the beginning, we would not be where we are today. he lied during the campaign, and he lied during the first part of his presidency. instead of being truthful, he lied and lost credibility. this started this whole sham of a presidency. thank you. host: alex thompson? guest: there is a lot of truth to that because joe biden did not tell the full truth during the 2020 campaign. he said his son had nothing to do with any business in china. that was not true. there were repeated instances of him saying i knew nothing about my son's business dealings, i was never in business with my son. he gradually moved the goalpost. there has not been in a smoking gun that joe biden is ever influenced u.s. foreign policy to enrich his son, to be clear.

but it is true that he issued this blanket denials, especially early on, that have not held up under scrutiny. host: what would you see as a smoking gun? guest: oh, let's focus on the main thing republicans have turned on, which is burisma and the ukrainian prosecutor. they say the ukrainian prosecutor was looking into burisma. joe biden they sickly pushed ukraine to fire the prosecutor -- joe biden basically pushed ukraine to fire the prosecutor. they say they are related. you have to have a smoking gun of hunter biden called his dad and said i need you to fire the prosecutor, it is hurting the company. and they have not found that. host: glendale, arizona, democrat, good morning. caller: good morning. first of, if the guy was addicted to crack cocaine and making all that money at the

same time, i give him all the props in the world for still being alive. but once his dog and pony show is over, will they be able to take any action against comer for his buffoonery, sue him or something? host: can you sue a member of congress after deposition? guest: i don't think so. if anything, i think comer may be rewarded politically for this. he has developed a big national base. sure, you saw this -- i'm not equating the different cases, but you saw it becoming the public face of an inquiry like this, which is big for a political future. i think of adam schiff and what he did taking on trump, and now he is a front runner to the next u.s. senator from california. james comer has run statewide in kentucky before, and i would not be surprised if he does again. host: how does jim jordan fit in? guest: it has always been an

interesting play between the two of them. because i think jim jordan has been a more disciplined messenger. he is very much out there, but he's in charge of the judiciary committee, not the oversight committee. and the oversight committee has a lot of jurisdiction here that jim jordan does not. but jim jordan is in the mix. host: judiciary committee investigating compared to the oversight committee, they are both behind closed doors, right? how do they break down the line of questioning? guest: it is a little bit of back-and-forth. and they're both sort of jockeying. when mccarthy first announced the impeachment, he put them together because he saw that jim jordan's team and their lawyers, especially when it comes to national security expertise, had a little bit more experience than james comer. host: wasn't jim jordan her chair of oversight committee at

one point? guest: yes. host: randy in missouri, republican. caller: i really appreciate your show. i just want to say that this rest -- arrest of this witness informant does not kill this case. they have evidence of shell companies, evidence of former business associates saying that he was selling the biden brand. and when you define bribery, it does not mean he has to personally gain from it. when his family gains from it, it qualifies as bribery. the third thing, this guy you are making out to be a right-wing radical republican, and he has arranged a sweetheart deal for hunter that gave him complete immunity from all future charges, which the judge

just asked three questions and it all lou up. -- it all blew up. so there is still a lot of evidence against mr. biden, and we have got to just deal with it. host: alex thompson? guest: some interesting and good points. it is true what he is saying, there were a lot of tips and business dealings, and hunter was selling the biden brand, and there is that. but one of the problems is that is a very compelling case against hunter biden, but you need to have a smoking gun to connect joe biden in order to impeach joe biden. you can say that joe biden benefited from the fact that hunter was getting more money, but i think the problem for the impeachment inquiry is they want to find evidence that he actually changed u.s. policy. are there sketchy business dealings? 100%. i do not think anyone would

discount that. in terms of david weiss, that is a good point that david weiss was the one that was about to give hunter an agreement, and that did not hold up after the judge questioned it. it is also one of the reasons why jim jordan and james comer have been critical of weiss. also remember that david weiss, not like a right-wing lunatic or anything, but he was a trump-appointed u.s. attorney that biden kept in place after he was elected because he was the one investigating hunter biden, has been now for five years. and after the plea deal fell apart, he really threw the book at hunter biden and tried to charge him with everything thing you could. host: hunter biden expected on capitol hill any minute to testify behind closed doors for his deposition. we have been talking about it. there is a shot of the doors were he is expected to come in.

james comer already came this morning before cameras to talk to reporters, along with other members of the oversight committee and judiciary committee. if we do get hunter biden in the next few minutes, we will show you that. the senate is in a 10:00 a.m. eastern, you can watch that on c-span2. on c-span at 10:00 a.m., we will take you to the supreme court for the case on him stocks, -- on bump stocks, so stick around for that. the houses in at noon eastern today. you can watch c-span all day long here in the various networks. chuck in alabama, independent. thanks for waiting. caller: good morning. you keep repeating that they identified evidence that joe biden changed policies, but maybe the problem is that he did not change policies, that he left things as they are so that it would not hurt china.

things we should be doing to china joe biden is not doing because maybe he has been influenced. what do you think about that? guest: it is a really interesting point. i think the thing they need to find is that joe biden was doing those things to benefit hunter. you can say hunter was in business with some chinese companies, so it is obvious. but in order -- the things the impeachment inquiry has tried to find and have yet to find is direct evidence. you can argue, just as he was, that -- host: hunter biden going through security here on capitol hill. looks like he is not going to stop to talk to reporters. go ahead, alex thompson. guest: the impeachment inquiry has been trying to find clear, either written evidence or evidence through phone calls in which was made very clear hunter

instructing his dad to do, or not do, something. that is what they have yet to find. host: to florida, hunter biden now in the congressional office building where he will be testifying behind closed doors, go ahead. caller: good morning, thank you for answering our questions. the one guy already sort of covered a lot of what i was going to ask with the deposition, way more than just about the informant and the input between the subseries -- subsidiaries, everything. for the money was going and everything, and this one fbi informant doesn't really, to me, have anything to do with it. it was just another claim. but they need to investigate all this stuff. i do have a question about the fbi informant they got arrested. what makes it different for him to get arrested and not mr.

steel from the dossier he put out from the fbi and stuff and was paid and everything from the fbi, informant, and everything else -- why wasn't he arrested for fabrication? host: alex thompson, i will let you take that. guest: again, very interesting points about -- and it is true that smirnov, the informant, that was seen to be corroborating evidence that justified the original allegations. when people say this is not what the whole case was built on, that is true, it wasn't. but they did seize on it. host: when you say they? guest: the republicans really seized on that potentially explosive claim. but they are right, hunter was in this with ukrainian -- in retrospect, i think joe biden

and hunter biden would do this over again. at the very least, it looks awful, and maybe they will find evidence they did something awful. the fact is joe biden was in charge of ukraine policy at the same time one hunter was on the board of a ukrainian energy company. that is at the very least not a good look. host: here with alex thompson this morning, you can find him on x @alexthompson. it says you're writing a book about biden. is that joe or hunter? guest: i do not think you can write about joe without talking about hunter. the book starts in 2015. this is just a year of incredible trauma for joe biden and for the whole biden family that started reverberating in everything going on. the reason i say 2015 is because that is the year when bill biden

dies, the heir apparent to joe biden. you hear joe biden still talk about how beau biden should be in this chair. that was also the year who hunter -- were hunter, who had problems before comes up breyer be -- sobriety problems, but when beau biden dies, that is one hunter loss control, his marriage fell apart, and he eventually began a relationship with his brother's widow. and the whole family was really struck in this tragedy. joe biden also wanted to run for president, if you remember, and was sort of dissuaded to do so by barack obama. which a lot of people in biden's inner circle considered a betrayal. i think a lot of what happened that year continues to reverberate throughout the

presidency. host: do you think joe biden regrets not running in 2016? guest: i think he does and i think it is part of the reason why he is running again now. i can tell you that when trump won in november 2016, it was also sort of a traumatic -- i'm using that word a lot, but it was a really traumatic event for joe biden, because he felt guilty for not running. beau biden wanted him to run and hunter wanted him to run, and he felt guilty because he thought he could have won, and then he felt angry at everyone who try to talk him out of it. host: taking phone calls before the supreme court comes in for that bump stock case. robert in florida, independent. caller: good morning. alex, you have interviewed hunter biden. the mainstream media says there is no smoking gun, no evidence of any wrongdoing. so please reveal to the american public who the big guy is who is

supposed to be allocating tens of thousands of dollars in the emails. if you did not ask that or you do not know, shame on you. thank you. host: the big guy? guest: this is about emails with tony bob linsky, and other business associate. to be clear, i am not saying there is no evidence here for what the republicans are alleging. they turned up a lot of evidence of sketchy financials, and hunter biden doing business with foreign nationals while his dad is vice president and doing a lot of -- also u.s. policy in. hunter biden went on air force to with joe biden to china and did business deals when he was there. so to say that there is no evidence here, that is not what i am saying. but i am saying republicans have suggested there is a smoking gun or they want to find one. the truth is, they have not

found it yet. host: to robert in greenville, north carolina, independent. caller: morning. i would like to know how we can allow donald trump to run for president with all the baggage, all the lies, all the evidence we have already, and also, he is going to do the same thing again. only worse. if it is a legitimate -- you know, he cannot say the last election was legitimate, and the rest of the republican party is following him. host: we're short on time. caller: i think it is crazy. host: in dixon, california, republican. morning. caller: good morning.

i have a question about policy change. is there any truth to i have seen, where joe biden tells ukraine to fire their prosecutor and he holds money that is already destined for ukraine hostage, and is there any truth to that to begin with? host: can you take us back to that? we have a few moments. guest: he did talk about that. human over and pushed them out the prosecutors. he said, if you want to keep this money for you want this foreign aid, you have to do it, and ukraine. fire the prosecutor. i did happen.

republicans say that joe biden did that to help hunter, but that has not been proven. that prosecutor was very popular. there was a lot of pressure to fire him because they believed he was corrupt. you may remember, this is the same issue that led to impeachment and now he is at the center of tbl presidential impeachments. -- two presidential impeachments. host: the testimony is an important cornerstone of joe biden's innocence. who is kevin archer again? guest: he is hunter biden's former longtime business partner.

he has separately been charged with fraud crimes. it was exonerating, but he was -- joe biden was not truthful about how much she was involved. hunter would often put him on speakerphone. he was the one that told others that he did go to a dinner with hunter's associates when joe biden said he had not been said under. so he did undermine some of the blanket denial. but it is also very clear that joe biden was not involved really in all -- and any of the business dealings. he was knowledgeable and knew about them, but he was not

involved in a way that the allegations would have you believe. host: joe biden expected to get his annual physical at walter reed medical center today. we are waiting to sure about the stock case. if you get a chance to chat with the members after the closed-door session, what would you want to find out about? guest: the main ones will be jamie raskin and probably jim jordan as well. jim jordan feels like the underlying facts have not changed, going forward with impeachment. the other is hunter biden's attorney and seeing how it went. this has been a long time in the works.

actually going back to the first trump impeachment. it is a pretty remarkable day when the president's son is being interrogated by congress. host: you can find that tomorrow.

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