inquiry into President Biden yesterday, the White# House is urging a more aggressive pushback to## the GOP and is dismissing the effort as --# quote -- "extreme politics at its worst."

That description came from Ian Sams, a White## House adviser working on congressional# investigations.

And he joins me Ia n, welcome.

Thanks for joining us.

IAN SAMS, White House Spokesma AMNA NAWAZ: So y a lack of public evidence and no floor# vote, as Speaker McCarthy had promised,## they say this allows committees to coordinate# investigations, gives them greater standing## to get documents that they are seeking, and# they're using it as an investigative tool.

So what does the White House say to that?

IAN SAMS: Look, I think that li ke Marjorie Taylor Greene, who demanded# that he open an impeachment inquiry,## or else she would shut down the government.

I think that they have made it po litically motivated exercise, rather than# any sort of real attempt to get to the truth## or the facts.

As you just noted, they have been# investigating the president for eight months now,## and time after time after time, they have# come up with no evidence of any wrongdoing.

And why haven't they come up with# any evidence of wrongdoing?

Because## there is no evidence of wrongdoing.

The# president did nothing turning this up over and over again.# Their own witnesses have testified## to that.

Their own documents that they# have received have testified to th And so this is clearly a politically motivated# stunt to try to attack President Biden over## nothing, to abuse what is supposed to be# a really grave constitutional process,## impeachment, for high crimes and misdemeanors as# a last resort by the Constitutio to sort of hold## people in power accountable.

They're# politicizing it and trivializing it.

And I think that what the American people are## going to see here is a president who's# focu a quarter-billion-dollar investment in cancer# research, versus what the House Republicans## care about, which is just more nasty, false# political attacks against the president.

AMNA NAWAZ: Well, Ian, the Republicans# will say they're not done gathering## their information.

And they are now seeking bank## and credit card statements.

Speaker# McCarthy listed th Has the Oversight Committee or anyone# else requested those documents Wh ite House?

And will the White# House comply with any subpoenas?

IAN SAMS: They haven't.

And so this is -- you're actu interesting point of this.

They claim that# there' just a month ago, James Comer went# on FOX Business Network and said,## everything I have requested via subpoena,# as the chairman of the Oversight Committee,## I have gotten 100 percent of what I have# asked for, including from our administration.

And so it raises the question of, why do they# even need to do this?

They have up any evidence, and they have tools at their# disposal to get it.

And it's because there is## no evidence.

It's because this is a baseless# stunt to try to go after the president.

I don't want to speculate about what they may or# may not ask for.

It's been 24 hours since they## opened this impeachment inquiry.

But they have# made no sort of explanation of what it's about.## They have outlined no impeachable offenses they're# investigating.

It's just a fishing expedition.

AMNA NAWAZ: Ian... so I don't want to speculate about# what they may or may not when he won't even explain# how this is going to work.

AMNA NAWAZ: Understood.

I do wan there are Americans who have expressed# some of these same concerns.

I yo u have seen these numbers.

You have seen# the polls when people are aske president's involvement in his son Hunter# Biden's business dealings.

A rece poll showed some 61 percent of people said# that then-Vice President Biden had -- quote,## unquote -- "some involvement" in Hunter# Biden's business dealings in Ukraine and China.

That's what they believed.

And it's not just# Republicans, right?

It was 64 percent of## independents who believe that.

Among those# independents, 61 percent also believed the## actions were illegal; 37 percent of independents# think the actions were unethical, but not illegal.

So how do Americans go about# getting those concerns addressed?

IAN SAMS: I think that things like# what you just said really show that## there's a real premium that's put on the truth.

I think it's incumbent upon the indepe the public the truth.

And the truth is that# the president was never in business with## his family and that these lies and false# attacks that are coming from with no evidence, no evidence to# back them up, are in fact lies.

And the public needs to understand that.

I# think that there needs to be more scrutiny## on these claims that are being made by House# Republicans that are feeding this perception,## which is driven by conservatives# and Republicans.

As you mentioned,## in that poll, when Republicans in that poll, 90# percent of them express a belief in so it raises questions about where they're# getting their information from and what## information they're getting,# which is why it's so much... (CROSSTALK) introduction -- a majority of in I do want to ask about the skepticism, though,# wh o have expressed some skepticism about the# process.

Has the White House been in to any of them or any of the 18 House Republicans who# represent districts that Mr. Biden won in 2020?

IAN SAMS: Well, you're exactly right that# moderate Republicans have come out and## said there's no evidence, it doesn't exist, we# don't know why we're moving to an impeachment## inquiry when they haven't laid out any evidence# implicating the president in any wrongdoing.

Those are moderate Republicans.

It sort of# explains why the speaker avoided having a vote,## to try to not lose a vote, because a bipartisan# majority of the House clearly opposed taking## on an impeachment over nothing.

And so I# think that, as this process moves forward,## those Republicans in Congress who are driving# this exercise are going to have to explain why## they want to lurch the Congress and the country# into an impeachment without evidence, instead of## focusing on the real issues that Americans want# to see their leaders in Washington focusing on.

The president's going to keep focused on# that.

The House Republicans are going to## do what the House Republicans want# to do.

But the president has a lot## of priorities for the American people.# He's talking about the economy I think that these are the things that the# public really wants leaders to be focused on,## not these sort of far right political sideshows.

AMNA NAWAZ: That is the White House# adviser working on in vestigations Ian Sams joining us tonight.

Ian, thank you for your time.

We appreciate it.

IAN SAMS: Thank you.