Two old NY Times articles are getting new attention because they seem to call into doubt the independence of the Justice Dept. under President Biden.
In June, President Biden made the infamous statement that Americans should have faith in the DOJ’s independence simply because he is “honest.”
“Due to the fact that you have probably seen that I have never once — not once — recommended to the Justice Dept. what they should or shouldn’t be doing in regards to filing a charge or not filing a charge. I’m sincere,” Biden declared.
But according to the New York Times, Biden aired his anger over the DOJ’s lack of vigilance in investigating former President Trump behind the scenes.
According to a March 2023 Times article:
“According to two people with knowledge of Mr. Biden’s earlier remarks, he once privately warned his inner circle of advisors that Mr. Trump constituted a threat to democracy and needs to be held accountable for his involvement in the events of January 6. Additionally, he expressed to confidantes his desire for Attorney General Merrick B. Garland to quit behaving ponderously and to move swiftly.”
The accusations initially appeared in a supposedly “paper of record” in April of last year in an article regarding the DOJ’s zealous pursuit of those responsible for the events of January 6. Source: The Times
“President Biden has occasionally been frustrated by the attorney general’s deliberate approach, as have other Democratic friends of the White House. According to two individuals familiar with Mr. Biden’s statements, he told his inner circle even as recently as the end of last year that he thought former President Trump posed a threat to democracy and needed to be punished.”
“Although the president has never voiced his displeasure to Mr. Garland directly, he has stated in private that he expected the prosecutor to act a lot more like a prosecutor that is prepared to take serious action about the events of January 6 rather than like a ponderous judge.”
16 months later, special counsel Jack Smith believes that Trump should be charged with obstruction of justice and conspiracy in relation to the January 6 incident and the presidential election in 2020. Smith was chosen by AG Merrick Garland.
Naturally, The Times cleared Biden of having a direct impact on Garland. However, the article also left open the potential that in accordance with Biden’s stated desires, senior advisers may have pressured the DOJ to investigate Trump more vigorously.
At the very minimum, a game of telephone was used to pass the information forward until Garland received it.
Kim Strassel, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, claims that “This is the way it works in Washington.”
“Biden was never going to write a document stating his preferences and send it to the Dept. of Justice. Nobody does it because everyone seeks plausible denial while giving instructions to the DOJ,” she said this week on Fox News.
“But instead,” she said, “he informs a small group of trusted friends, and those friends tell others, and that word gets to Merrick Garland.”
