Department of Justice called 'biased' as it refuses to prosecute Attorney General Merrick Garland for contempt of Congress

WASHINGTON, DC: The Department of Justice (DOJ) sent a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday, June 14, stating the agency will not prosecute Attorney General Merrick Garland for contempt as reported by Fox News.

On Wednesday, the House voted 216-207 to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur's interview with President Joe Biden in his classified documents case. Garland was referred to the DOJ for criminal charges, where he holds the top position himself.

DOJ's letter to Speaker Mike Johnson

In a letter to Speaker Johnson, Assistant Attorney General Carlos Felipe Uriarte wrote, "Consistent with this longstanding position and uniform practice, the Department has determined that the responses by Attorney General Garland to the subpoenas issued by the Committees did not constitute a crime, and accordingly, the Department will not bring the congressional contempt citation before a grand jury or take any other action to prosecute the Attorney General."

The Justice Department provided Congress with Hur's report without any additional redactions and facilitated his congressional testimony, mentioned Uriarte, adding that transcripts of Hur's interview with Biden and other materials were produced as well.

"Notwithstanding the Department's efforts to accommodate the Committees' requests and the Committees' lack of a sufficient need for the audio files that would further a legitimate congressional purpose, and despite the President's directive, on May 16, 2024, the Committees adopted resolutions recommending that the House of Representatives (House) cite the Attorney General for contempt," stated Uriarte. 

Garland had voiced his disappointment with the Congress using their authority as a "partisan weapon" on Wednesday, stating, "Today’s vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Department’s need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy."

On Friday night, Speaker Johnson announced that House Republicans would challenge the decision.

He stated, "The House disagrees with the assertions in the letter from the Department of Justice, and as Speaker, I will be certifying the contempt reports to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia. We will also move to enforce the subpoena of Attorney General Garland in federal court," as per CBS News. 

Internet slams the DOJ for refusing to prosecute Attorney General Merrick Garland for contempt of Congress

One wrote, "Further proves the politically biased Justice system," and another stated, "DOJ is compromised."

"Two justice systems, two sets of rules, and everybody sees it," noted a person, while someone else fumed, "So, Garland is not going to prosecute Garland got it!" 

"Lmao how convenient," mocked an individual. 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.