Attorney General Merrick Garland answered questions from reporters about concerns about his department's integrity as the Hunter Biden scandal played out in Washington during a press conference on Friday.
The House Ways and Means Committee yesterday made the testimony of two IRS whistleblowers public, revealing explosive accusations made against the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Garland was questioned on Friday regarding the recent revelations, American concerns about the integrity of the DOJ, and its use as a weapon against conservatives. Garland dismissed those worries as a "attack" on "democracy" and the DOJ.
By asserting that we do not treat cases equally, some people have chosen to criticize the Justice Department's integrity, Garland said. "This is an assault on a foundational institution of American democracy... There is no possible way that this is true.
The press conference comes a day after explosive IRS whistleblower testimony revealed a number of troubling alleged actions the division allegedly took in an effort to "delay" the investigation into the president's son.
Whistleblowers claimed on Thursday that the DOJ under Biden had directly interfered with the criminal investigation into Hunter. The publicly available testimony described protracted unjustified delays, a lack of transparency, and threats from the Defence Council intended to "delay, divulge, and deny" the investigation.
The DOJ allegedly refusing to look into a WhatsApp message between Hunter Biden and Chinese businessman Henry Zhao was a major problem. If payments to the Bidens were not made right away, Hunter Biden allegedly threatened to "destroy" Zhao with his father Joe Biden, who was allegedly present.
Representative Jason Smith (R-MO) cited how U.S. Attorney David Weiss' attempts to file charges against Hunter Biden in 2022 and 2023 were unsuccessful. The DOJ was "intervening and overstepping" in the investigation, according to whistleblowers, despite the fact that there was a strong tax liability case regarding Hunter Biden's payments, according to reports.
Smith also revealed that Hunter's attorneys received critical information about the investigation before it was ready. For instance, Hunter Biden's attorneys were informed in advance of a search warrant being issued for a storage facility in Northern Virginia housing his records. The IRS investigators, according to the whistleblowers, faced significant internal obstacles during their investigation despite an apparent strong case for tax liability on the payments. The testimony further alleges a lack of independence on the part of the U.S. Attorney as well as unusual actions outside the normal scope of any investigation.
The House Ways and Means Committee yesterday made the testimony of two IRS whistleblowers public, revealing explosive accusations made against the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Garland was questioned on Friday regarding the recent revelations, American concerns about the integrity of the DOJ, and its use as a weapon against conservatives. Garland dismissed those worries as a "attack" on "democracy" and the DOJ.
By asserting that we do not treat cases equally, some people have chosen to criticize the Justice Department's integrity, Garland said. "This is an assault on a foundational institution of American democracy... There is no possible way that this is true.
The press conference comes a day after explosive IRS whistleblower testimony revealed a number of troubling alleged actions the division allegedly took in an effort to "delay" the investigation into the president's son.
Whistleblowers claimed on Thursday that the DOJ under Biden had directly interfered with the criminal investigation into Hunter. The publicly available testimony described protracted unjustified delays, a lack of transparency, and threats from the Defence Council intended to "delay, divulge, and deny" the investigation.
The DOJ allegedly refusing to look into a WhatsApp message between Hunter Biden and Chinese businessman Henry Zhao was a major problem. If payments to the Bidens were not made right away, Hunter Biden allegedly threatened to "destroy" Zhao with his father Joe Biden, who was allegedly present.
Representative Jason Smith (R-MO) cited how U.S. Attorney David Weiss' attempts to file charges against Hunter Biden in 2022 and 2023 were unsuccessful. The DOJ was "intervening and overstepping" in the investigation, according to whistleblowers, despite the fact that there was a strong tax liability case regarding Hunter Biden's payments, according to reports.
Smith also revealed that Hunter's attorneys received critical information about the investigation before it was ready. For instance, Hunter Biden's attorneys were informed in advance of a search warrant being issued for a storage facility in Northern Virginia housing his records. The IRS investigators, according to the whistleblowers, faced significant internal obstacles during their investigation despite an apparent strong case for tax liability on the payments. The testimony further alleges a lack of independence on the part of the U.S. Attorney as well as unusual actions outside the normal scope of any investigation.
