Hunter Biden is another step closer to being held in contempt of Congress after refusing to appear to give a closed-door deposition Wednesday, Breitbart reported. Penalties for such an infraction include possible jail time and a fine up to $100,000.

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) moved forward with contempt of Congress proceedings. The subpoena is part of an impeachment inquiry against Hunter Biden's father, President Joe Biden.

It's routine for lawmakers to seek depositions in their investigations, and they have been employed by Democrats in the past. Hunter Biden is just as obligated as any other witness, according to Comer and Jordan.

"We will not provide special treatment because his last name is Biden. As our committees were today prepared to depose Hunter Biden, he chose to make a public statement on Capitol Hill instead where he said his father, Joe Biden, was not financially involved in his family’s business dealings," the lawmakers wrote.

"Exactly how was Joe Biden involved? Evidence shows Joe Biden met with Hunter’s business associates, and his name was at the center of the family business strategy," Comer and Jordan wrote in their case against the younger Biden for contempt of Congress.

"Today, the House will vote on an impeachment inquiry resolution to strengthen our legal case in the courts as we face obstruction from the White House and witnesses. Today’s obstruction by Hunter Biden reinforces the need for a formal vote," they added.

The vote to formalize the impeachment inquiry happened later Wednesday. It passed 221-212, predictably following party lines with Republicans.

Hunter Biden claimed in a public statement outside of the U.S. Capitol that his objection to the deposition was that it was private, the Associated Press reported, "Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics, expose their baseless inquiry, or hear what I have to say. What are they afraid of? I am here."

The president, for his part, attempted to downplay the whole ordeal by saying it was a waste of Republicans' time. "Instead of doing anything to help make Americans’ lives better, they are focused on attacking me with lies," Joe Biden said.

"Instead of doing their job on the urgent work that needs to be done, they are choosing to waste time on this baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts," he added. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) commented along the same lines during the debate leading up to the vote.

"This whole thing is an extreme political stunt. It has no credibility, no legitimacy, and no integrity. It is a sideshow," McGovern said.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, believes the impeachment is baseless as it doesn't involve the president. "I mean, there’s a lot of evidence that Hunter Biden did a lot of improper things," Nadler said.

"He’s been indicted, he’ll stand trial. There’s no evidence whatsoever that the president did anything improper," Nadler claimed.

What these Democrats fail to mention is that Hunter Biden has allegedly done many things, including tax evasion and racking up gun charges. Now he'll add contempt of Congress to the mix, all in the name of protecting himself and his powerful father.