Garland denies interfering with Hunter Biden probe in first comments since whistleblower claims released
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday denied interfering with the U.S. attorney's Hunter Biden investigation, saying "I don't know how it would be possible."
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday denied whistleblower allegations that the Justice Department, FBI and IRS interfered with U.S. Attorney David Weiss' investigation of Hunter Biden.
"As I said at the outset, Mr. Weiss, who was appointed by President Trump as the U.S. attorney in Delaware and assigned this matter during the previous administration, would be permitted to continue his investigation and to make a decision to prosecute any way in which he wanted to and in any district in which he wanted to. Mr. Weiss has since sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee confirming that he had that authority," Garland told reporters at a news conference.
"I don't know how it would be possible for anybody to block him from bringing a prosecution, given that he has this authority," Garland said.
"He was given complete authority to make all decisions on his own behalf," the attorney general added.
Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters Friday that U.S. Attorney David Weiss had complete authority to investigate and prosecute Hunter Biden and denied that anyone at the Justice Department interfered with his investigation, as whistleblowers have claimed. (AP/Jose Luis Magana)
The House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday released testimony from two IRS whistleblowers who alleged officials at the Justice Department, FBI and IRS interfered with the investigation of Weiss' tax evasion case against Hunter Biden. The whistleblowers accused investigators of "trying to limit" questioning related to President Biden as part of the investigation into his son, Hunter Biden, and said decisions in the case seemed to be "influenced by politics."
"Whatever the motivations, at every stage decisions were made that had the effect of benefiting the subject of the investigation," said one whistleblower, IRS Criminal Supervisory Special Agent Gary Shapley Jr.
Two whistleblowers came forward to the House Ways and Means Committee and alleged officials at the Justice Department, FBI and IRS interfered with the investigation into Hunter Biden's tax crimes, which the Justice Department has denied. (REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz)
Shapley oversaw the IRS probe into the president's son. He has accused Justice Department officials of "slow-walking" the Hunter Biden probe, limiting investigators' line of questioning for witnesses, and repeatedly delaying the investigation, ostensibly to avoid influencing elections.
The whistleblowers' allegations were released just days after the Justice Department announced that Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two misdemeanor counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax as part of a deal that is expected to keep him out of prison. The president's son also agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion agreement with regard to a separate charge of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.
DEMOCRATS TRIED TO KEEP HUNTER BIDEN IRS WHISTLEBLOWER TESTIMONY SECRET
In response to the whistleblower allegations, the Justice Department said in a statement: "As both the Attorney General and U.S. Attorney David Weiss have said, U.S. Attorney Weiss has full authority over this matter, including responsibility for deciding where, when, and whether to file charges as he deems appropriate. He needs no further approval to do so. Questions about his investigation should be directed to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Delaware."
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The White House has repeatedly said President Biden has never been involved in his son's business dealings. They also maintain the president never discussed them with him.
Fox News' Brianna Herlihy and Jon Street contributed to this report.
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