What questions will the GOP ask about Merrick Garland?
The Hunter Biden investigation, Governor Andrew Cuomo’s nursing home scandal should be the topic of the hearing for the attorney general to choose Merrick Garland. Jamil Jaffer, director of the National Security Law & Policy Program at George Mason University, with reaction.
Judge Merrick Garland, chosen by President Biden to be the next US Attorney General, is likely to be questioned by Senate Republicans on Monday about controversial issues, including the Cuomo nursing home scandal, concerns about Hunter Biden and much more. most.
Garland’s hearing started at 9:30 am and is expected to last well into the night. The hearing will continue on Tuesday, but probably with external testimony and not with Garland himself. The hearing is the first high-level nomination hearing on the Senate Judiciary Committee with Democrats in charge of the Senate and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Commanding the powerful committee.
MERRICK GARLAND: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE BIDEN NAMED ATTORNEY GENERAL
Garland is a highly respected judge at the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, which is considered the second highest court in the United States. He must get enough votes to eventually be confirmed as the next attorney general. But Republicans are likely to take advantage of the national television audience on Monday to attack Democrats on important issues and crack down on Garland in some of the key decisions he will have to make if confirmed.
Among the topics expected is the alleged cover-up by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of deaths in nursing homes that allegedly resulted from state policies at the beginning of the pandemic.
In this archival photo of January 7, 2021, President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for attorney general, Judge Merrick Garland, speaks during an event at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo / Susan Walsh, Archive)
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“When Judge Garland testifies before this Committee, we expect him to commit the Justice Department to fully investigate this cover-up to determine whether any criminal laws have been violated and to prosecute any violations,” a group of nine Republicans led by Senator Ted Cruz, R- Texas, said in a letter last week.
“We’re also going to ask him if he has the resources he needs to carry out a thorough investigation, not just of the deaths that occurred in New York, but the deaths that occurred in other states that adopted similar guidelines that led to the admission of infected with COVID-19 people in elderly care institutions, “continued the senators.
Cuomo denies any wrongdoing. But he is under increasing fire from both the left and the right, not only for his administration’s handling of deaths in nursing homes, but also for the behavior of Cuomo and his aides towards those who criticize the governor.
Aside from questions about how Garland feels about the Cuomo investigation in principle, Garland may face more practical questions about who would end up handling a Cuomo investigation.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks to the press at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York on March 27, 2020. Cuomo is under attack for allegedly covering up deaths in nursing homes that allegedly resulted from state policies early in the pandemic. (BRYAN R. SMITH / AFP via Getty Images)
(BRYAN R. SMITH / AFP via Getty Images)
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Senate Judiciary Committee member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, last week asked the Biden administration to keep Toni Bacon, who is the acting US attorney for the Northern District of New York. Bacon is part of a group of Trump-era federal prosecutors that the Biden government has asked to resign. But Grassley said she should be retained to handle any investigation into the Cuomo administration, because New York Southern District Attorney Audrey Strauss is the mother of Cuomo’s top aide, Melissa DeRosa.
Republicans also telegraphed that Garland will face questions about the federal investigation into Hunter Biden’s “tax affairs”, from which the president has vehemently promised to stay out. Republicans can ask Garland, a political nominee, to stay out of the investigation.
“Americans deserve to know that this investigation will not be hindered in any way by the change in administrations, and the appointed attorney general must make this point clear,” a Grassley spokesman previously told Fox News. “So yes, you can expect Senator Grassley to ask about his role in this investigation.”
A spokesman for the committee member, Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., also said earlier that the issue is “very likely” to come up.
Senator Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, for the next two years will be the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee. He signaled that Republicans will put pressure on Biden’s attorney general, Judge Merrick Garland, about how he will handle the Hunter Biden investigation and the alleged cover-up of deaths in nursing homes by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
(AP Photo / Andrew Harnik)
MERRICK GARLAND: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE BIDEN NAMED ATTORNEY GENERAL
One possible question is whether Garland will pledge not to fire Delaware Attorney General David Weiss. Weiss was an exception to the resignations requested by the Biden administration of U.S.-era Trump prosecutors, and Representative Ken Buck, R-Colorado, in a letter last week asking Garland to commit to following the president’s example. It is possible that Senate Republicans also mention this topic.
Another potential topic is the investigation by Special Advisor John Durham, who is investigating alleged irregularities committed by federal police in investigating whether the 2016 presidential campaign of then-candidate Donald Trump was colluding with the Russian government. Republicans are likely to ask Garland not to interfere with the investigation. Garland may also face questions about President Biden’s policy changes under the Trump administration on immigration.
Garland, for his part, must emphasize his commitment to prosecute members of the pro-Trump mob that attacked the United States Capitol on January 6 and his belief that the United States should do more to ensure that its justice system treats everyone. equally.
In this archive photo of November 7, 2020, President-elect Joe Biden, on the right, embraces his son Hunter Biden, on the left, in Wilmington, Del. Hunter Biden says he learned from federal prosecutors that his tax affairs are under investigation. (AP Photo / Andrew Harnik, Pool)
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“If confirmed, I will oversee the prosecution of white supremacists and others who invaded the Capitol on January 6 – a heinous attack that sought to break a cornerstone of our democracy: the peaceful transfer of power to a newly elected government,” said Garland. reads. “This critical work is only part of the Department’s broad scope of responsibilities.”
He adds that the mission to defend all civil rights for Americans “remains urgent because we do not yet have equal justice. Communities of color and other minorities still face discrimination in housing, education, employment and the criminal justice system; and bear the brunt of the damage. caused by the pandemic, pollution and climate change. “
Garland was appointed to the Supreme Court of former President Barack Obama in 2016, following the death of Judge Antonin Scalia. But the Republicans refused to give him an audience, saying he believed the winner of the election should have an opportunity to replace Scalia. Judge Neil Gorsuch now occupies that seat.
Ronn Blitzer, Jodie Curtis and Evie Fordham of Fox News contributed to this report.