AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
With the sudden appointment of David Weiss as special counsel over the Hunter Biden probe, lots of questions have emerged. Weiss, who is the same U.S. Attorney of Delaware that just got caught trying to offer the president’s son a sweetheart plea deal, is now gaining powers to bring charges in other jurisdictions. Conversely, he’s also gaining the ability to hobble House Republicans as they continue their investigation into alleged corruption surrounding that deal and the broader Biden family.
Rep. James Comer has a pretty good idea of what is transpiring, and he ripped into the appointment of Weiss by AG Merrick Garland.
COMER: This move by Attorney General Garland is part of the Justice Department’s efforts to attempt a Biden family coverup in light of the House Oversight Committee’s mounting evidence of President Joe Biden’s role in his family’s schemes selling ‘the brand’ for millions of dollars to foreign nationals. The Justice Department’s misconduct and politicization in the Biden criminal investigation already allowed the statute of limitations to run with respect to egregious felonies committed by Hunter Biden. Justice Department officials refused to follow evidence that could have led to Joe Biden, tipped off the Biden transition team and Hunter Biden’s lawyers about planned interviews and searches, and attempted to sneakily place Hunter Biden on the path to a sweetheart plea deal.
Let’s be clear what today’s move is really about. The Biden Justice Department is trying to stonewall congressional oversight as we have presented evidence to the American people about the Biden family’s corruption. The House Oversight Committee will continue to follow the Biden family’s money trail and interview witnesses to determine whether foreign actors targeted the Bidens, President Biden is compromised and corrupt, and our national security is threatened. We will also continue to work with the House Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means to root out misconduct at the Justice Department and hold bad actors accountable for weaponizing law enforcement powers.
Despite Comer’s justified anger, Weiss’ appointment does not preclude the ability to make him show up and testify as part of the House investigation. It could make public disclosures and document production more difficult, though. Those are barriers that Comer and his team will have to barrel through. They are too close to the prize to let the DOJ outmaneuver them at this point, and at the end of the day, the constitutional oversight powers of Congress remain in effect.
Still, Comer is absolutely correct, in my opinion, about what the DOJ’s motivation is here. Could Weiss bring charges in other districts he was previously denied in? Yes, and all indications are that he will do so given the DOJ has announced they expect to go to trial now. At the same time, those charges are minuscule compared to the other crimes Hunter Biden has allegedly committed, some of which the DOJ conveniently let the statute of limitations run out on. Further, filing in Washington, D.C. or the Central District of California makes it more likely that Weiss will get a judge willing to rubberstamp another sweetheart for the president’s son.
As Rep. Jim Jordan stated after Garland’s presser, appointing Weiss as special counsel makes no sense based on Weiss’ own statements. A simple connecting of the dots gives one a pretty good indication of what’s really going on here.
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TWEET
Rep. Jim Jordan @Jim_Jordan
First, David Weiss said he didn’t have the power he needed and wanted special counsel status.
Then, he said he had all the power he needs.
Now, he gets special counsel status because he didn’t really have the power he needs?
Something’s not right.
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Weiss wants to be on both sides of the issue, and that’s not going to work. He insisted, including by sending a letter to Congess, that he did not need any special counsel privileges. AG Merrick Garland even said publicly that Weiss was free to file charges wherever he wants. Now, suddenly, he needs special counsel powers. What’s that tell you? It tells you this isn’t about actually going hard after Hunter Biden but that it’s about trying to give Congress the run-around. I don’t expect Comer and House Republicans to be thrown off the scent that easily, though.
