(VitalNews.org) – House Republicans are demanding answers from Attorney General Merrick Garland as to why he decided to go with placing David C. Weiss in charge of the Justice Department’s probe into the first son Hunter Biden.
Reps. James Comer of Kentucky, Jason Smith of Missouri, and Jim Jordan of Ohio put out a letter on Monday detailing their concerns about Weiss. Comer is head of the Oversight Committee, Jordan leads the Judiciary Committee, and Smith is head of the Ways and Means Committee. Weiss is an attorney for Delaware’s federal District Court.
Weiss was already in the middle of a similar case prosecuting Hunter Biden related to a gun law violation and tax violations when Garland tapped him on August 11 to lead the more expansive Department of Justice (DOJ) probe into the same charges. Garland reasons that having Weiss on the case would expand the probe into other states rather than limiting it to Delaware.
Weiss was heavily criticized by Republicans, however, because he offered a sweetheart plea deal to Hunter Biden, which many felt demonstrated double standards for those in power. The deal was rescinded after a judge questioned it.
In the letter to Garland, the lawmakers said it’s unclear why Garland has “only now… opted to appoint” Weiss as the special counsel for the case after five years of an ongoing investigation, especially after Garland and the DOJ “represented” that Weiss “already had ‘ultimate’ authority” over Hunter Biden’s case. They also cited two whistleblowers from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) who accused the special counsel’s office of dragging out the gun law and tax violation case and overlooking other more serious crimes.
Comer, Jordan, and Smith are requesting the Attorney General hand over all communications, documents, and any memorandums relating to the appointment of Weiss and his evaluation.
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