Attorney General Merrick Garland is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to discuss the Justice Department's accomplishments over the past year, including combating violent crime and hate crimes, working with Ukraine against Russia, and protecting reproductive freedom. He will also be asked to explain the department's stance on a variety of issues, including civil rights, immigration, and gun control. The hearing is expected to last several hours and will be streamed live on the Senate Judiciary Committee's website.
Posts tagged as “Merrick Garland”
The House Judiciary Committee has issued subpoenas to the Department of Justice, FBI, and Department of Education as part of its investigation into the Biden administration's response to rising tensions and threats of violence surrounding school board meetings. The investigation is focused on whether the Justice Department strategy to address threats against teachers and school officials was abused to target conservative parents. This is the first set of subpoenas from the Judiciary's subcommittee dedicated to investigating the alleged weaponization of the federal government and could have far-reaching implications for the Biden administration.
The FBI has taken down the website of the notorious Hive ransomware group, which has extorted over $100 million from 1,300 companies worldwide. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that the Justice Department had dismantled the international ransomware network, following a hospital attack in October. The FBI is urging organizations to take steps to protect themselves from ransomware, and encouraging victims to report attacks to law enforcement.
Mike Pence recently asked an attorney to review four boxes of documents stored in his Indiana home, which revealed around a dozen classified documents. These documents were promptly turned over to the FBI, and Pence denied taking any classified documents when asked in Iowa. The FBI is now investigating the documents to determine their origin and if any laws were broken.
The U.S. Department of Justice and eight states have filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging that the company's dominance in digital advertising harms competition and has caused publishers to charge subscription or other fees. The complaint claims that Google has used its power to "neutralize or eliminate" rivals and to force advertisers to use its products. This is the fifth federal antitrust suit against Google since 2020, with the company yet to comment on the latest lawsuit.
Attorney General Merrick Garland has defended the Justice Department's handling of two separate special counsel investigations into classified documents linked to former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden. He has stated that the Department applies the same norms and practices to all, and is now grappling with a growing political nightmare due to the investigations targeting two presidents. In his first public remarks on the topic, Garland was asked whether he believed the Justice Department was handling the probes fairly, to which he responded that the Department has a set of norms and practices that are applied to all.
The Justice Department is taking a hard stance on the mishandling of classified documents, appointing special counsels to investigate both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) believes that both should be treated “exactly the same way” and that Garland “probably did the right thing by having two special counsels.” Trump is also facing a special counsel for multiple investigations, and it remains to be seen how the Justice Department will handle the investigations.
Robert Hur, a former US attorney in Maryland, has been appointed by the Justice Department to investigate the classified documents found at President Joe Biden's home and former private office. The House Judiciary Committee has also opened an investigation, sending a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland demanding all documents and communications related to the discovery. Hur has a long and distinguished career as a prosecutor, having played a key role in a number of high-profile cases.