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Attorney General Merrick Garland gave his most detailed and direct defense to date on Friday allegations from IRS agents of possible misconduct and political influence in the Investigation of the Ministry of Justice from Hunter Biden.
For the first time, Garland was outright contesting one of the main ones allegations made by the alleged whistleblowers: that Trump-appointed US attorney David Weiss had asked to be appointed special counsel and was turned down by Garland.
“The only person with the authority to make someone special counsel or to refuse to make someone special counsel is the attorney general,” Garland said. “Mr. Weiss never made that request to me.”
PHOTO: Attorney General Merrick Garland announces the arrest of employees of Chinese chemical companies as part of an investigation into the fentanyl precursor supply chain at a news conference on June 23, 2023 in Washington, DC (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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Garland went on to say that the level of authority he had chosen to allow Weiss in the decision to press charges actually gave him “more authority than the special counsel would have had” to bring a case against Hunter Biden.
Garland also stressed that Weiss was never prohibited from filing charges in jurisdictions other than Delaware — another of the allegations brought forward by the IRS agents.
“I don’t know how it would be possible for anyone to stop him from prosecuting, given that he has this authority and has never been told no,” Garland said.
PHOTO: Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, attends the annual White House Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, April 18, 2022. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images, FILE )
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ABC News then urged Garland to authorize Weiss to speak directly about some of the more specific allegations made by the IRS agents, as Weiss has declined virtually all requests for comment on the case, except for his letter to House Judiciary . earlier this month.
“I would support Mr. Weiss in explaining or testifying about these matters when he sees fit,” Garland said.
PHOTO: FILE – U.S. Attorney David Weiss gives a press conference outside the Federal Courthouse. (Suchat Pederson/AP, FILE)
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Congressional Republicans on Thursday released transcripts of their interviews with the two IRS whistleblowers who in April accused the Justice Department of giving Hunter Biden “preferential treatment” during the year-long investigation into his tax affairs.
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Jason Smith, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, promoted the whistleblowers’ testimony as evidence that senior officials in the Biden administration obstructed Weiss’s investigation — a sentiment that conflicts with the Trump appointee’s own affirmation that Garland had granted him “ultimate authority” to investigate the younger Biden.
Hunter Biden this week agreed to plead guilty to a pair of tax-related misdemeanors and enter into a pre-trial diversion agreement that would allow him to avoid prosecution on a misdemeanor charge, potentially ending to the DOJ’s years of investigation.
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Garland of Friday was asked about allegations that the politicization of the Justice Department was becoming a major campaign issue and theme among Republicans in Congress.
“I certainly understand that some have chosen to attack the integrity of the Justice Department and its subdivisions and its employees by claiming that we are not treating like cases alike,” Garland said. “This is an attack on an institution that is essential to American democracy and vital to the security of the American people. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
He added: “You’ve all heard me say many times that we base our business on the facts and the law. These are not just words. This is what we live by. They are the basis of how we make these decisions. “
Garland responds to IRS whistleblower allegations in the Hunter Biden case originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
