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Biden: Impeachment hasn't 'shaken my faith' in working with Republicans

The former vice president said "no one's" found anything wrong with his son Hunter Biden's dealings in Ukraine.
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Former Vice President Joe Biden said the impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump haven't "shaken" his faith" in working with Republicans, adding that "no one's" found that his son Hunter Biden did anything untoward in Ukraine.

Impeachment "hasn't shaken my faith in being able to work with at least" some Republicans, Biden told "TODAY" show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie in an interview before Monday's Iowa caucuses.

"I think you're going to see the world change with Trump gone," Biden added.

The Senate last week voted against calling witnesses in Trump's impeachment trial, with just two Republicans voting in favor of additional testimony and documents. Some Republicans who voted against calling witnesses conceded that Trump acted improperly with regard to calling on Ukraine to announce investigations of the Bidens as he withheld nearly $400 million in aid.

The Senate is now expected to acquit Trump on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told Bloomberg News Sunday that should Biden win the presidency, Republicans might "immediately" push to impeach him.

Biden has long insisted that he and his son did nothing wrong regarding Hunter's position on the board of a Ukrainian gas company — which Trump asked his Ukrainian counterpart to announce an investigation into.

On Monday, Biden said, "It's a good thing that no one's found anything wrong with his dealing with Ukraine except they say it sets a bad image."

Asked if it was "wrong" for his son to take the board seat "knowing that it was really because that company wanted access to you," the former vice president said, "that's not true."

"You're saying things you do not know what you're talking about," he said. "No one has said that — who said that?"

Guthrie followed up, asking why Biden's son would have that board seat "if not for who his father was?"

"Because he's a very bright guy," the elder Biden said, adding that any problems were just of the "appearance."

For months, Trump and allies have alleged that the younger Biden's service on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company, at a time when his father oversaw Ukraine policy in the Obama administration was corrupt. Most notably, they have advanced the unsubstantiated claim that as vice president the elder Biden took steps to protect his son from an investigation of the company.

But Bloomberg News, citing documents and a former Ukrainian official, reported that the Burisma investigation had been dormant for more than a year before Biden called for Viktor Shokin, Ukraine's top prosecutor at the time, to step down. PolitiFact, meanwhile, reported that it found no evidence to "support the idea that Joe Biden advocated with his son's interests in mind."

Shokin's ouster was backed by the international community as he was seen as ignoring corruption in the country.

Heading into Monday's caucuses, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., holds a four-point lead over Biden in the Hawkeye state, according to the RealClearPolitics average of several polls.

Biden said he sees his candidacy as "moving on from what we started" in the Obama administration.

"One of the reasons I'm running is because of my experience," he said. "Who's going to be ready on day one? To pick up the phone and call any world leader and they know who he is and he knows who they are."