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Lawyer Common Merrick B. Garland, dealing with the prospect of a contempt vote in Congress, lashed out at Home Republicans on Tuesday, accusing his critics of looking for to undermine the rule of legislation, peddling “conspiracy theories” and spreading falsehoods.
The often mild-mannered Mr. Garland pushed again towards the false accusation that the Justice Division was one way or the other behind the prosecution and subsequent conviction of former President Donald J. Trump on 34 felony counts of falsifying enterprise data to cowl up a intercourse scandal. The case was introduced by Alvin L. Bragg, the Manhattan district lawyer, who as an area prosecutor just isn’t underneath the management of Mr. Biden or his administration.
“That conspiracy principle is an assault on the judicial course of itself,” Mr. Garland stated in a gap assertion to the Home Judiciary Committee.
His remarks amounted to a vigorous protection of the division as Mr. Trump and his allies have escalated their assaults on legislation enforcement after his conviction in Manhattan court docket final week and because the former president has been shadowed by different prison instances.
Amongst Mr. Trump’s extra extraordinary claims in latest weeks was the extremely deceptive assertion that the Biden administration was ready to kill him when the F.B.I. performed a court-ordered search of his Mar-a-Lago property in 2022 to retrieve categorized paperwork.
“That is harmful,” Mr. Garland stated in response to a query by Consultant Jerry Nadler, Democrat of New York, in regards to the penalties of such an assertion. The declare, the lawyer normal stated, distorted an ordinary Justice Division use-of-force coverage that had additionally utilized to a search of President Biden’s Delaware residence.
“It raises the threats of violence towards prosecutors and profession brokers,” Mr. Garland stated. “The allegation is fake.”
The committee and the Home Oversight Committee beneficial final month holding Mr. Garland in contempt for refusing to show over audio recordings of interviews that Robert Okay. Hur, the particular counsel, performed with President Biden final yr. Mr. Hur finally cleared Mr. Biden of prison wrongdoing over his retention of categorized materials, regardless of faulting his reminiscence and dealing with of delicate paperwork. In contrast, prosecutors accused Mr. Trump of risking nationwide safety secrets and techniques by hoarding authorities data at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
“Sure members of this committee and the Oversight Committee are looking for contempt as a way of acquiring — for no respectable goal — delicate legislation enforcement info that might hurt the integrity of future investigations,” Mr. Garland stated. He has argued that the recordings may very well be altered and utilized in pro-Trump political adverts.
“I can’t be intimidated,” he continued. “And the Justice Division won’t be intimidated.”
Final month, President Biden asserted government privilege to disclaim Home Republicans entry to the recordings, denouncing their effort as a political stunt with dire implications for federal legislation enforcement.
It got here two months after a transcript was made public.
The transfer was meant to defend the division, and Mr. Garland, from prosecution if Home Republicans voted to carry him in contempt. They’ve but to schedule a ground vote.
Mr. Garland stated on the time that the bid by Republicans was the newest in “a collection of unprecedented and, frankly, unfounded assaults” on the division and the rule of legislation.
On Tuesday, Mr. Garland advised Republicans that these efforts have been feeding “heinous” threats towards particular person profession brokers and prosecutors.
“These assaults haven’t, and they won’t, affect our choice making,” he stated.
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