Today, the House Judiciary Committee, House Oversight and Accountability Committee, and House Ways and Means Committee released an interim staff report titled, "The Justice Department's Deviations from Standard Processes in its Investigation of Hunter Biden." The report reveals several deviations by Justice Department officials "from the normal process that provided preferential treatment, in this case to Hunter Biden."
According to the report, two IRS whistleblowers came forward in the spring of 2023 to notify Congress of how the Justice Department had impeded, delayed, and obstructed the criminal investigation of President Biden's son, Hunter Biden. The whistleblowers noted that the Justice Department allowed the statute of limitations on certain charges against Hunter Biden to lapse, prohibited line investigators from referring to or asking about President Biden during witness interviews, withheld evidence from line investigators, excluded the investigative team from meetings with defense counsel, and tipped off defense counsel about pending search warrants.
On September 12, 2023, the Speaker of the House directed the Committees to conduct an inquiry to determine whether sufficient grounds existed for the impeachment of President Biden. The Committees released a memorandum on September 27, 2023, laying out the areas of investigation, including foreign money received by the Biden family, President Biden's involvement in his family's foreign business entanglements, and steps taken by the Biden Administration to slow, hamper, or impede the criminal investigation of Hunter Biden.
As part of the impeachment inquiry, the Committees have obtained documents and conducted interviews with officials from the Justice Department, FBI, and IRS. The report lists the officials who have been interviewed, including Special Counsel and U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware David Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Thomas Sobocinski, among others.
The testimony and documents received by the Committees corroborate many of the allegations made by the IRS whistleblowers. The report states that evidence shows the Justice Department and FBI bureaucrats afforded special treatment to Hunter Biden, including slow-walking the investigation, informing defense counsel of future investigative actions, and preventing line investigators from taking ordinary steps. These tactics conflicted with standard operating procedures and ultimately benefited Hunter Biden.
The report also reveals that U.S. Attorney Weiss did not have "ultimate authority" over the Hunter Biden case, contrary to his assertions to Congress. Instead, Biden Administration political appointees exercised significant oversight and control over the investigation. Witnesses described how Weiss had to seek agreement from other U.S. Attorneys and approval from the Biden Justice Department's Tax Division for specific charges or investigative actions against Hunter Biden.
Furthermore, the report alleges that the Biden Justice Department attempted to cover up Hunter Biden's wrongdoing and its own. The report states that without the whistleblowers, it is likely that the Biden Justice Department would have never acted on Hunter Biden's misconduct. The Department worked closely with Hunter Biden's counsel to craft a biased plea deal that fell apart in open court. Attorney General Garland appointed Weiss as special counsel and refused to answer questions about the case on the basis of an "ongoing investigation," using it as a veil to shield misconduct.
Despite these troubling findings, the report highlights that the Justice Department is keeping information from the Committees and has not fully complied with requests for relevant documents. The Department has also prevented two Tax Division officials from testifying, despite subpoenas compelling their testimony.
The report concludes that the Justice Department's disregard for the Committees' oversight responsibilities is a stain on its once-venerated reputation. The Committees will continue to gather evidence to determine whether sufficient grounds exist to draft articles of impeachment against President Biden for consideration by the full House of Representatives.
The full report can be accessed here.
To learn more, click on this link: https://judiciary.house.gov/media/press-releases/house-republicans-report-reveals-david-weiss-and-dojs-preferential-treatment
