U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland engaged in a six-hour-long session with members of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, as reported by Fox News. During this extensive session, Garland addressed various topics, including concerns about Special Counsel David Weiss, allegations of bias against Catholics, the investigation into parents confronting school boards, and differing approaches to abortion opponents.
Garland also fielded inquiries about why the Department of Justice allowed the statute of limitations to expire on tax fraud charges related to Hunter Biden’s tenure on the board of directors for Burisma. He indicated that Mr. Weiss would address this matter in a future statement and refrained from commenting on it at that time.
Republicans raised questions about Garland’s involvement in the Hunter Biden investigation, especially in the context of the ongoing impeachment inquiry against President Biden and allegations of corruption within the Biden family.
“I am not the president’s lawyer,” Garland said, adding the Justice Department’s “job is to follow the facts and the law, and that is what we do.”
“I promised the Senate that I would not interfere,” he added, “I would not influence the investigation.
He firmly declined to address inquiries regarding policy choices made by high-ranking officials within the DOJ.
“I have no intention of engaging in discussions regarding internal deliberations within the Justice Department, regardless of whether I was involved in them,” Garland stated before Congress.
House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, a Republican from Ohio, raised the topic of Hunter Biden’s affiliation with the Ukrainian natural gas company, Burisma Holdings.
Representative Jordan pointed out that the DOJ did not pursue potential tax-related charges against Hunter Biden for the years 2014 and 2015. During those years, Hunter allegedly failed to report approximately $400,000 in income earned from his position at Burisma.
“Mr. Weiss was the supervisor of the investigation at that time and at all times,” Garland responded. Jordan commented, “We all know why they did it,” implying a connection to the president.
A tense confrontation occurred between Garland and Representative Jefferson Van Drew, a Republican from New Jersey, regarding the DOJ’s investigations into Catholic and pro-life organizations. Rep. Van Drew inquired about an anti-Catholic memorandum within the FBI, which led to undercover agents being dispatched to Catholic Churches.
“The idea that someone with my family background would discriminate against any religion is so outrageous,” replied the attorney generay, adding he and the FBI director were “appalled by that memo.”
Representative Chip Roy, a Republican from Texas, queried Garland about the reported focus of the DOJ on parents during school board meetings, citing a 2021 memorandum from Garland.
“There’s nothing to rescind,” Garland responded, claiming the memo did not label parents as terrorists.
Roy also pressed Garland on why the DOJ had pursued legal action in 126 cases involving pro-life organizations, in contrast to just four cases involving pro-choice groups.
The Texas Republican brought up the example of Mark Houck, a pro-life activist who had faced the possibility of imprisonment for his demonstrations outside an abortion clinic but was ultimately found not guilty.
Garland responded, “The Justice Department acknowledges and respects the jury’s verdict.”
