House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan criticized Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday for the Justice Department’s actions that appear to favor President Biden and his son while aggressively pursuing charges against former President Donald Trump.
“Everyone knows the fix is in,” said Mr. Jordan, an Ohio Republican, as he faced off with Mr. Garland during a hearing. “And you wonder why four out of five Americans believe there are now two standards of justice in our great country.”
In his opening statement at the panel’s oversight hearing of the Justice Department, Mr. Jordan accused Mr. Garland of trying to protect Hunter Biden by blocking charges of tax fraud and gun charges brought by lead prosecutor David Weiss. He also criticized the “ridiculous” sweetheart plea deal offered.
According to Mr. Jordan, Mr. Trump faced much harsher tactics from the Justice Department, including an aggressive search of his Mar-a-Lago home for classified documents. His lawyers were not allowed to participate, which Mr. Jordan called “a complete departure from standard protocol.”
This is Mr. Garland’s first appearance before the GOP-led Judiciary panel. It follows the launch of an impeachment inquiry by the House GOP into President Biden’s alleged involvement in his son’s foreign business deals.
Mr. Garland will face questions from both Republicans and Democrats, some of which will overlap with the impeachment inquiry to be led by the Oversight and Accountability panel.
