During a heated Judiciary Committee hearing, Attorney General Merrick Garland promised that the federal investigation into Hunter Biden’s business dealings would be independent of political influence.
Garland has previously pledged not to interfere with the Delaware U.S. attorney David C. Weiss’ probe Hunter Biden into his foreign business dealings . These are currently under both federal as congressional investigations.
Garland was criticized for failing to elevate Weiss to special counsel status in order to protect his independence. On Wednesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, pressed Garland on what would happen if Weiss needed to pursue the case against Biden outside his Delaware jurisdiction.
Attorney General Merrick Garland is sworn into office during Wednesday’s hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Washington D.C. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Garland conceded that Weiss would have to refer the case to another district in that instance, though he maintained that the decision on whether to make an outside referral is entirely up to Weiss.
“[I]f it’s in another district, he would have to bring the case in another district,” Garland said. “But, as I said, he will be able conduct his investigation and that it can be run. And if he needs to bring it in another jurisdiction, he will have full authority to do that.”
Grassley responded by pointing out the possibility of a referral, which could allow a Biden appointee the freedom to pursue the case beyond Delaware. “If Weiss (the U.S. Attorney in Delaware) must ask permission from a Biden-appointed U.S. Attorney to bring charges then the Hunter Biden criminal probe isn’t insulated against political interference as you have publicly stated,” he stated.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa., has been actively questioning the federal probe into Hunter Biden for months. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images).
Grassley also asked Garland if Weiss could bring Hunter Biden charges more effectively if he was made a special counsel.
“It’s kind of a complicated question,” the attorney general replied, adding that such a decision would have to be brought to him first. “I would then have to, you know, authorize it and permit it to be brought in the jurisdiction — and that is exactly what I promised to do here.”
President Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, step off Air Force One in Syracuse, New York, on Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
In his closing question, Grassley pressed Garland on whether he believed “improper or unlawful” payments from a foreign government to “elected officials or other politically-exposed persons” would constitute a national security concern.
Garland stated, “If it’s an agent for a foreign country asking someone and paying someone, yes, that would be a security problem.”
