GOP Senator Joni Ernst Denies Warning Biden Could Be Impeached If He Becomes President, Says She Was 'Taken Entirely Out of Context'

Republican Iowa Senator Joni Ernst said her comments on Sunday that former vice president Joe Biden could be impeached if he does win the presidency were taken "out of context."

Ernst told Bloomberg News in a Sunday interview that Biden could be involved in an impeachment situation "the day after he would be elected."

Ernst clarified her comments to reporters Monday at the Senate.

"That was taken entirely out of context," Ernst told The Hill. "The point is that the Democrats have lowered the bar so far that regardless of who it is, if you have a different party in the House than that of an elected president, you can have just random comments thrown out there with folks saying we're going to impeach."

"So, no, it was taken out of context," Ernst continued. "I didn't say what the headlines [said] but simply that we've lowered the bar so much, is this really what the American people want? And I would say no, it's not."

As previously reported by Newsweek, Ernst said on Sunday that Biden "should be very careful" concerning his publicly stated support of impeaching President Donald Trump because the same thing could happen to Biden "for being assigned to take on Ukrainian corruption yet turning a blind eye to Burisma because his son was on the board making over a million dollars a year."

"I think this door of impeachable whatever has been opened," Ernst said. "Joe Biden should be very careful what he's asking for because, you know, we can have a situation where if he should ever be President Biden, that immediately, people, right the day after he would be elected would be saying, 'Well, we're going to impeach him.'"

In an interview Sunday with the Des Moines Register, Biden said Ernst's remarks proved how "frightened" Trump is of facing Biden in the 2020 presidential election.

"She just reinforces everything that was the reason why the president was being impeached," Biden said. "They very much don't want to face me obviously. I've never seen a sitting president and his allies this frightened about who may be the nominee."

Newsweek reached out to Biden's campaign for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Biden also called for Iowans to "ruin Joni Ernst's night" by supporting him in the caucuses during a January speech in Muscatine, Iowa.

"You know, the whole impeachment trial for Trump is just a political hit job to try to smear me because he is scared to death to run against me and he has good reason to be concerned," Biden said.

"Let me tell you something," Biden added. "You Iowa caucusgoers have a chance for a twofer. You can ruin Donald Trump's night by caucusing for me, and you can ruin Joni Ernst's night as well."

With the Iowa caucuses happening Monday, polling from Emerson College showed Biden in second place behind Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Biden received 21 percent in the poll while Sanders garnered 28 percent. Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg took third place in the poll with 15 percent.