US attorneys in Delaware deny retaliation against IRS officials who have disclosed details of the Hunter Biden investigation, and deny being deterred from bringing serious charges against Mr. Biden, the president's son, in Los Angeles and Washington.
David C. Weiss, a nominee of former President Donald J. Trump held by the Biden administration, defended the integrity of his investigation in a two-page letter sent to House Republicans late Friday, in which he provided his most detailed account of the five-year investigation that culminated in a plea deal last month that would have waived a prison sentence for Mr Biden, who faces a misdemeanor tax violation charge and separate weapons charges.
The Justice Department “didn't reply” to Gary Shapley, who claimed Mr Weiss helped block the promotion he was seeking after reaching out to congressional investigators, Mr Weiss wrote in a letter to Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
Mr Weiss went on to discuss, in hypothetical terms, the crux of Mr Shapley's allegations: that Biden's appointed US attorneys in California and Washington had blocked Mr Weiss from suing Hunter Biden on felony tax charges during a period when the youngest son of the president made millions representing controlled businesses. foreign.
Mr Shapley, testifying before the House Ways and Means Committee in May under what Republicans said was whistleblower protection, also said he and other investigators had witnessed Mr Weiss say last year that he would not be the “decision official” as to whether to sue Mr Biden, and that Mr Weiss had been turned down when he sought special counsel status after being told by local prosecutors that he could not press charges. House Republicans released testimony last month.
While Mr Weiss did not deny that the offices had rejected his request to bring more serious charges, he did support Attorney General Merrick B. Garland's public statements that he had been given full authority in the case, and that he had options. from overriding the prosecution by simply contacting Mr. Garland or his main helper.
As a US attorney in Delaware, “my charging authority is geographically limited to my home district,” Mr. Weiss.
“If the venue for a case is elsewhere, it is common practice for the department to contact the United States Attorney's Office for the district in question and determine whether it wants to partner on the case,” he added. “If not, I can request special attorney status.”
Representing federal prosecutors as special counsel is different from making them special counsel. Special attorney provisions are, in essence, a solution that allows outsiders to intervene in cases that span multiple jurisdictions or have special conditions. The special counsel regulations, in contrast, contain Department of Justice internal reporting requirements and congressional oversight provisions.
Mr Garland said Mr Weiss never asked him to be appointed as special counsel.
Mr Weiss did not address the matter explicitly in the letter he sent to Mr Jordan on Friday. But he said that if he wanted to press charges against Mr Biden in California or Washington, he would do so without worrying about being blocked by department heads.
“I have been assured that, if necessary after the above process, I will be granted a § 515 Authority in the District of Columbia, Central District of California, or any other district where charges may be filed in this matter,” he wrote, referring to federal law department that defines the role of the special attorney.
The letter follows a formal June 7 letter he sent to Republican committees making many of the same points in less specific terms.
Mr Weiss was extremely frustrated by what he believed to be an unprovoked attack on his character and motives, and was anxious to express his response to Mr Shapley's allegations before the 4th of July break, according to two people familiar with the situation.
Emails sent to Mr Weiss' spokesman were not immediately answered.
Mr. Jordan, along with Representative James R. Comer of Kentucky, who chairs the Oversight Committee, and Representative Jason Smith of Missouri, who heads the Ways and Means Committee, sent letters Thursday to Mr. Weiss and other officials involved in the Hunter Investigation of Biden requesting testimony. them about the problem.
Mr Weiss said the Justice Department's legislative affairs office was in contact with Mr Jordan's staff “to discuss the appropriate timing and scope” for his public testimony once it was appropriate to take place.
In his statement announcing Mr Biden's plea deal, Mr Weiss said the investigation was “ongoing”, legally preventing him from testifying on the details.