House Republicans face mounting resistance as third ex-Biden WH aide pleads Fifth Amendment
A top former Biden administration aide invoked the Fifth Amendment during her closed-door deposition with the House Oversight Committee on Friday, Fox News Digital was told.
Annie Tomasini becomes the third Democratic ex-official to stonewall investigators looking into whether signs of former President Joe Biden's alleged mental decline were covered up by his inner circle.
The former White House deputy chief of staff was seen entering and exiting the committee room in under an hour, saying nothing to reporters either time.
A source familiar with the discussions told Fox News Digital that she invoked the Fifth Amendment multiple times, which likely is what led to the hasty meeting. Tomasini herself did not answer when Fox News Digital asked if she did so, however.
COMER DISMISSES BIDEN DOCTOR'S BID FOR PAUSE IN COVER-UP PROBE: 'THROWING OUT EVERY EXCUSE'
The source said Tomasini pleaded the Fifth when asked if Biden, a member of his family, or anyone at the White House instructed her to lie regarding his health at any time.
She also pleaded the Fifth when asked if she ever advised Biden on the handling of classified documents found in his garage, if Biden or anyone in the White House instructed her to conceal or destroy classified materials found at the former president's home or office, and if she ever conspired with anyone in the White House to hide information regarding the Biden family’s business dealings, the source said.
Fox News Digital reached out to Tomasini's lawyers but did not immediately get a response.
Comer confirmed she invoked the right against self-incrimination in a statement after the deposition, though he was not present in-person for the staff-led meeting.
"Today, the third witness in our investigation into the cover-up of President Biden’s cognitive decline and unauthorized executive actions pleaded the Fifth Amendment. There is now a pattern of key Biden confidants seeking to shield themselves from criminal liability for this potential conspiracy," Comer told Fox News Digital.
"It’s unbelievable that Ms. Tomasini and others refuse to answer basic questions about President Biden’s fitness to serve…There needs to be transparency and accountability, and we will continue to pursue the truth and examine options to get the answers we need.
Tomasini is the third ex-Biden administration official to come before committee investigators under subpoena, and the fifth to appear overall.
She was meant to appear Friday for a voluntary transcribed interview, but a committee aide previously told Fox News Digital that Tomasini's lawyers had asked House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., to issue a subpoena specifically.
Both prior officials who appeared under subpoena – ex-White House physician Kevin O'Connor and Anthony Bernal, a longtime aide to ex-First Lady Jill Biden – also invoked the Fifth Amendment.
Comer 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. Biden allies have pushed back against those claims.
FAR-LEFT FIREBRAND SAYS SHE 'NEVER HAD A CONCERN' ABOUT BIDEN'S MENTAL STATE AS HOUSE PROBE HEATS UP
In an interview with The New York Times on Thursday, Biden affirmed he "made every decision" on his own.
But Republicans have repeatedly accused those who have pleaded the Fifth Amendment so far of intentionally hiding critical information about the former president, even as their attorneys argue it is not an admission of guilt.
A source familiar with the Biden team's thinking called House Republicans' probe "dangerous" and "an attempt to smear and embarrass."
"And their hope is for just one tiny inconsistency between witnesses to appear so that Trump’s DOJ prosecute his political opponents and continue his campaign of revenge," the source said.
Fox News Digital's Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report