Merrick Garland After Contempt of Congress Vote: 'A Partisan Weapon'

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland called the recent vote to hold him in contempt of Congress for refusing a subpoena a “partisan weapon.”

As Breitbart News reported on Wednesday, the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives voted to hold Merrick Garland in contempt for refusing to comply with congressional subpoenas.

“The vote easily cleared, given House Republicans’ thin margins, in a 216 to 207 vote after a day of deliberation,” the report noted.

“The House Committees on Oversight and Accountability and Judiciary issued subpoenas to Garland on February 27, 2024, for records related to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation of President Joe Biden’s willful mishandling of classified information,” it added.

Republican leaders in Congress previously threatened to hold him in contempt “in their efforts to gain access to audio recordings from special counsel Robert K. Hur’s investigation into President Biden’s handling of classified materials,” according to the Washington Post.

Garland reportedly requested for the president to claim executive privilege on the recordings, fearing that “releasing them could harm future efforts to get officials to cooperate with investigations and sit for taped interviews,” per the Post.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Garland referred to the contempt vote as a “partisan weapon.”

“It is deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon,” he said. “Today’s vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Department’s need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.”

As Breitbart News also reported on Wednesday, President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice issued a memo saying that Garland will be protected from the contempt of Congress vote due to executive privilege.

“The memo’s release conveniently came hours before the House of Representatives took the long-anticipated step of voting to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with Congressional subpoenas for records related to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation of President Joe Biden’s willful mishandling of classified information,” it noted.

Garland previously told Congress that he “will not be intimidated” by threats of contempt.

“I view contempt as a serious matter. But I will not jeopardize the ability of our prosecutors and agents to do their jobs effectively in future investigations. I will not be intimidated. And the Justice Department will not be intimidated. We will continue to do our jobs free from political influence. And we will not back down from defending democracy,” he said.

Paul Roland Bois directed the award-winning Christian tech thriller, EXEMPLUM, which has a 100% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes and can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. “Better than Killers of the Flower Moon,” wrote Mark Judge. “You haven’t seen a story like this before,” wrote Christian Toto. A high-quality, ad-free rental can also be streamed on Google Play, Vimeo on Demand, or YouTube Movies. Follow on X @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.