According to a report released by the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General (OIG), Justice Department officials who worked under President-elect Trump's first administration targeted Democratic governors over investigations related to the coronavirus pandemic. (OIG) may have influenced the 2020 presidential election through intentional media leaks.
Inspector General Michael Horowitz says three Trump federal officials are pursuing cases of pandemic-related negligence that caused nursing home death rates to skyrocket in Pennsylvania, Michigan, New York and New Jersey. did. According to the paper, the trio The report was released on Tuesdayprematurely disclosed its findings to the New York Post as a “last play” before the election.
According to the OIG, the paper published the article before New Jersey and New York state officials were informed of the Justice Department investigation. The Wall Street Journal was also accused of publishing information leaked by officials.
“These news reports (and others) quote anonymous department officials and say that certain Justice Department officials objected to the inclusion of some information that was included in the draft DOJ letter and press release. “Information that was disclosed, information that was not made public, and other non-public information,'' the report said.
Horowitz said the officials' actions likely violated the Hatch Act and referred his findings to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel for further investigation.
Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (Democratic), who was in office at the time of the incident, has questioned the circumstances under which the incident occurred and is now calling for justice based on the law.
“This blockbuster report confirms what we have said all along: that the federal government corrupted and abused the Department of Justice to influence the 2020 presidential election, and in the process “They have used the real pain of people who have lost loved ones to the coronavirus as a weapon for their own greedy electoral gains,” Cuomo press secretary Rich Azzopardi said in a statement obtained by The Hill.
“These findings reveal the truth: New York and other Democratic states are being targeted by the federal government for reasons other than interfering with the presidential election, and nursing homes in other states are losing care due to the coronavirus.” “Quality deteriorated further and guidance was issued” in New York and other Democratic states to comply with the federal CDC. [Center for Disease Control] and CMS [Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services] guidelines,” the statement reads.
Azzopardi added: “Those involved in this blatant weaponization of the Department of Justice for political gain should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
A spokesperson for President Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But the president-elect has long accused the Biden administration of using the Justice Department as a vehicle for political vendetta, and has consistently argued that the lawsuits in federal court are motivated by his critics. and is emerging.
Trump is currently facing election interference and classified documents cases after special counsel Jack Smith dropped the election interference and classified documents case, citing Trump's 2024 election victory and the Justice Department's current policy of blocking prosecutions against sitting presidents. is asking Attorney General Merrick Garland to seal his federal investigation records.
Garland agreed to block the release of a report on the documents, but the findings of the case related to President Trump's efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election to President Biden. He said he would make it public.
Smith is expected to resign from the agency before the president-elect returns to the White House later this month.
