In a new letter sent on Friday, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) again called out U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and demanded answers and information regarding the Federal Government's raid and subsequent indictment of former President Donald Trump for his handling of classified documents after leaving office.
🚨 #BREAKING: @Jim_Jordan reveals new information on Trump raid and events surrounding indictment.
— House Judiciary GOP (@JudiciaryGOP) June 9, 2023
Link: https://t.co/lKoX5u6wWO pic.twitter.com/AsyzvvKGHx
Citing the DOJ's actions against Trump — while ignoring the mishandling of classified information by Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden — that have created the "serious appearance of a double standard and a miscarriage of justice," Chairman Jordan lays out the situation as it stands now:
The Biden Department of Justice is reportedly about to indict a former president and President Biden’s chief rival in the upcoming presidential election. According to reports, the Department will indict President Donald Trump, despite declining to indict former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for her mishandling of classified information and failing to indict President Biden for his mishandling of classified information. The indictment creates, at the minimum, a serious appearance of a double standard and a miscarriage of justice—an impression that is only strengthened by allegations that a Biden Justice Department lawyer “inappropriately sought to pressure” a Trump-affiliated lawyer with the prospect of a judgeship. Additional information recently obtained by the Committee about the Department’s execution of a search warrant on President Trump’s residence only reinforces our grave concerns that your reported actions are nothing more than a politically motivated prosecution.
Jordan's letter also reveals new information from a transcribed interview the House Judiciary Committee conducted with the former Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office Steven D'Antuono, someone who raised several concerns about the DOJ and FBI's handling of the case against the 45th president:
On June 7, 2023—days before the reported indictment of former President Trump—the Committee conducted a transcribed interview of Steven D’Antuono. Mr. D’Antuono served as the former Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office (WFO) and one of the most senior FBI officials in charge of effectuating the unprecedented raid of President Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago. During his testimony, Mr. D’Antuono expressed strong concerns with the Department’s pursuit of the raid and noted several unusual features in the Department’s handling of the case. Mr. D’Antuono, who had over two decades of FBI experience, noted his frustration that the FBI was going to be “left holding the bag again” with respect to the search of President Trump’s residence.
D'Antuono's concerns, according to Jordan's letter, included the fact that the FBI's "Miami Field Office did not conduct the search," the Justice Department "did not assign a U.S. Attorney’s Office to the matter," the "FBI did not first seek consent to effectuate the search," and that the "FBI refused to wait for President Trump’s attorney to be present before executing the search."
Chairman Jordan had previously requested information from Attorney General Garland related to the search of Mar-a-Lago for Judiciary oversight "which the Department has refused to provide," according to Jordan, so Friday's letter reiterated and expanded the previous request in light of Trump's looming indictment.
The Judiciary Committee, with a deadline of June 16, requested:
1. All documents and communications referring or relating to meetings between FBI and Justice Department officials prior to the execution of the search warrant on President Trump’s private residence;
2. All documents and communications referring or relating to the execution of a search warrant on President Trump’s private residence, including those sent or received by the following FBI and Justice Department Officials:
a. Paul Abbate,
b. Matthew Olsen,
c. Jay Bratt,
d. George Toscas,
e. Steven D’Antuono; and
3. All documents and communications between or among Washington Field Office agents and employees and the U.S. Secret Service about a potential search of President Trump’s residence.
As Chairman Jordan pointed out, the appearance of a two-tiered system of politicized justice in the United States continues to become more clear: there's one system for Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and their pals while another system is used against Donald Trump, other Republicans, and conservatives seeking to exercise their God-given freedoms.
Merrick Garland’s DOJ:
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) June 9, 2023
One standard of “justice” for Republicans, parents, and traditional Catholics.
Another for Democrats.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member