Garland denies Hunter probe obstacles, won’t say if he’s talked with Weiss

Attorney General Merrick Garland sensationally contradicted himself Wednesday, insisting that the Hunter Biden investigation never faced obstacles from President Biden’s Justice Department — before admitting Biden-appointed US attorneys until recently “could refuse to partner” on prosecuting the president’s son.

House Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) grilled Garland on IRS whistleblower claims that he lied under oath earlier this year about Delaware US attorney David Weiss having “full authority” to bring charges outside the state — when in fact Biden-appointed US attorneys in DC and Los Angeles allegedly refused to prosecute Hunter Biden for tax fraud.

“Quote, ‘Mr. Weiss has authority to bring cases and other jurisdictions if he feels it’s necessary.’ That was your response, attorney general, to Sen. [Chuck] Grassley’s question on March 1, 2023,” Jordan pressed Garland at a Judiciary Committee hearing.

“The only problem is he had already been turned down by the US Attorney in the District Columbia, [Matthew] Graves. So he didn’t have full authority, did he?”

Garland at first sought to defend his prior testimony, which critics say was belied by his elevation of Weiss Aug. 11 to the rank of special counsel to bring charges against the first son outside of Delaware for about $2.2 million in alleged tax evasion.

“I had an extended conversation with Sen. Grassley at the time. We briefly touched on the Section 515 question and how that process went,” Garland at first said.

“You said he had complete authority, but he’d already been turned down,” Jordan interjected. “He wanted to bring an action in the District of Columbia and the US attorney there said, ‘No, you can’t.’ And then you go tell the United States Senate, under oath, that he has complete authority.”

“I’m going to say again that no one had the authority to turn him down,” Garland responded. “They could refuse to partner with him.”

“You can use whatever you use language you want — refuse to partner is turning down,” Jordan replied.

Garland also insisted during an exchange with Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC) that Weiss “had the authority because I promised he would have the authority” — even if he didn’t have the specific grant of authority at the time.

Until Weiss was named a special counsel, he would need approval from DOJ leadership to be granted special attorney or special counsel status to bring charges outside Delaware if other US attorneys refused to participate.

The attorney general repeatedly declined to comment on the investigation of Hunter Biden, during which IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler said that Weiss’s office stymied key investigative steps — including preventing them from investigating Joe Biden’s alleged role in Hunter’s business dealings in countries such as China and Ukraine.

Garland said he could not comment on any details because of the “ongoing” investigation while deflecting other questions, such as about Hunter’s reported $1.3 million in art sales to a presidential appointee and other still-unidentified buyers since his father entered the White House.

The attorney general repeatedly emphasized that Weiss was nominated in 2017 by former President Donald Trump, without noting that he was recommended by the state’s two Democratic senators, who are close Biden allies.

Garland also refused to say whether he’s spoken to Weiss or anyone else about the sprawling Hunter Biden probe, which appeared poised to end in a probation-only plea deal before a federal judge in July rejected the agreement.

Weiss on Sept. 14 filed felony gun charges against Hunter Biden in Delaware and could soon refile tax charges and related counts in DC or Los Angeles, potentially including money laundering or illegal foreign lobbying charges.

Under questioning from Republican members of the Judiciary Committee, the AG repeatedly claimed he had stuck to his vow before the Senate not to get involved in the five-year-old investigation of the first son.

“Can you tell us about any briefings or discussions you personally have had with Mr. Weiss regarding any and all federal investigations of Hunter Biden?” asked Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.).

“I will say it again, I promised the Senate I would not interfere with Mr. Weiss,” Garland said.

“Under oath today, your testimony is that you have not had any discussions with Mr. Weiss about this matter?” Johnson pressed.

“Under oath, my testimony today is, I promised the Senate I would not intrude into this investigation,” the AG responded. “I do not intend to discuss internal Justice Department deliberations, whether or not I had them.”

“Oh, OK,” a visibly irritated Johnson responded. “So your testimony today is, you’re not going to tell us whether you’ve had discussions with Mr. Weiss.”

“My testimony today is that I told the committee that I would not interfere,” Garland said.

Moments earlier, Johnson asked Garland whether he had spoken with any FBI officials about the case.

“I don’t recollect the answer to that question,” Garland answered after pausing for several seconds. “But the FBI works for the Justice Department.”

“I’m sorry,” Johnson jumped in. “You don’t recollect whether you’ve talked to anybody at FBI headquarters about an investigation into the president’s son?”

“I don’t believe that I did,” Garland backtracked. 

Republicans have scrutinized the DOJ after Shapley and Ziegler testified earlier this year that political appointees interfered in the probe.

Shapley notably alleged that Weiss said at an Oct. 7, 2022, meeting that he did not have the ultimate authority over what charges to bring against Hunter and where to charge him — contradicting Garland’s testimony under oath. Lying to Congress is a crime.

Garland took a veiled swipe at the IRS agents during Wednesday’s hearing for having made their disclosures to Congress.

“The whistleblowers gave us testimony about serious misconduct at the Justice Department in regards to the preferential treatment afforded Hunter Biden. Has your office requested an investigation into that?” Johnson asked Garland.

“There are well-known processes for how whistleblowers make their claims. I am a strong proponent of whistleblowers and a strong defender,” Garland said.

“We have an Inspector General’s Office; we have an Office of Professional Responsibility,” the AG added. “That is the way in which complaints from whistleblowers should be and are appropriately handled.”

Attorneys for Shapley have said he raised his complaints with internal watchdogs from the Justice and Treasury departments before going to lawmakers. DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz confirmed on July 19 that Shapley had “disclosed information” to his office.

Garland and Weiss have denied Shapley’s contention that the US attorney lacked authority to bring charges against the first son, with Weiss claiming DOJ officials had told him he could file charges anywhere he wished.

“I’m not going to get into the internal deliberations of the department,” the AG told Johnson when he asked who had given Weiss that guarantee. “I made clear that Mr. Weiss would have the authority to bring cases that he thought were appropriate.”

Garland added that there was “nothing cumbersome about the process” of investigating the first son, prompting Johnson to ask whether he thought the IRS whistleblowers and FBI agents who spoke to Congress were lying.

“Their description of the process as cumbersome is an opinion,” Garland stated. “Not a fact.”

At the top of the hearing, Jordan alleged there was a double standard in the Justice Department’s treatment of President Biden and former President Donald Trump.

Jordan rattled off a list of grievances in his opening statement — including the “sweetheart” Hunter Biden plea deal that fell apart in July, special counsel Jack Smith’s twin probes “attacking President Trump,” the FBI’s scrutiny of traditionalist Catholics, and more.

“Four out of five Americans believe there are now two standards of justice in our great country,” Jordan remarked at one point to the AG.

Ranking member Jerry Nadler (D-NY) was quick to fire back in his opening remarks, telling Jordan: “Just about every assertion you made in your opening statement has been completely refuted by witnesses who have testified before this committee.”

When his turn to speak came, Garland acknowledged the public scrutiny of the DOJ, before warning that “singling out individual career public servants who are just doing their jobs is dangerous.”

“We will not be intimidated,” he added. “We will do our jobs, free from outside influence, and we will not back down from defending our democracy.”