The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to charge Attorney General Merrick Garland with contempt of Congress, making the Department of Justice’s top official subject to criminal charges.
Republican lawmakers sought to hold Garland in contempt for refusing to turn over audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s meetings with President Biden.
Hoare’s findings proved that Biden did not commit any wrongdoing in handling classified documents, but he also said that the 81-year-old president described himself as a “caring, well-meaning elderly man with a declining memory” and that “it would be difficult to persuade a jury to convict a former president, who was already in his 80s, of a felony that requires a wayward state of mind.”
Johnson proposes cutting Special Counsel’s Office budget amid Jack Smith’s Trump investigation
House Speaker Mike Johnson successfully passed a vote to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress. (Getty Images)
Biden and his allies vehemently denied concerns about his mental health following the report.
Republicans seeking the recording argued it would provide important context about Biden’s state of mind, while Democrats dismissed the request as a partisan effort. Politicize Department of Justice (DOJ).
“It’s very unfortunate. I think this is an abuse of the contempt power,” Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) told Fox News Digital about the Republican effort.
Hill blocks Fox News camera crew during TLAIB interview
But Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas argued that the Justice Department’s refusal meant Garland simply wanted to cover it up.
“There’s only one reason the attorney general would do that: He doesn’t want us to hear it, that’s why,” Roy said on the House floor Wednesday. “And there are really only two reasons for that to happen: Either the transcript doesn’t match the audio, or the audio is so bad he doesn’t want us to hear it.”
Republican Sen. Chip Roy of Texas argued that Garland didn’t want to hand over the tapes because of their contents. (Getty Images)
The pursuit of Hoare’s audio tapes is part of a broader impeachment inquiry by House Republicans looking into allegations that Biden used his political position to enrich himself and his family. Biden denies any wrongdoing.
House Republicans earlier this year dropped efforts to push for a contempt resolution against President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, after GOP investigators reached a settlement with Biden’s lawyers.
Meanwhile, two former Trump administration aides, former trade adviser Peter Navarro and former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, were found guilty of contempt of Congress on January 6 for evading a subpoena by a House of Representatives Select Committee.
Trump’s conviction highlights divisions among Republican presidential primary opponents
Both men were the subject of criminal charges brought by the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives. The Justice Department did not respond to a third Democratic complaint against former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
The Justice Department is highly unlikely to act on House Republicans’ introduction of Garland, a move that frustrated House Republicans who spoke to Fox News Digital on Wednesday.
Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon (left) and former adviser to President Trump Peter Navarro (right) were both found guilty of contempt of Congress. (Getty Images)
“I’m not optimistic because I think the Department of Justice has proven to be highly partisan and not an honest broker in terms of applying the law,” Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.) said.
Click here to get the FOX News app
When asked if he thought the Justice Department would take action, Rep. Byron Donald (R-Fla.) said, “I don’t think so.”
Garland indirectly criticized Republican resistance to the Justice Department. The Washington Post Tuesday morning editorial.
“In recent weeks, we have seen an intensification of public scrutiny, criticism, and attacks that go far beyond legitimate and necessary oversight of our operations. They are baseless, personal, and dangerous,” he wrote. “These attacks have taken the form of threats to defund certain departmental investigations, and most recently the special counsel’s indictment of a former president.”
