Attorney General Merrick Garland appeared at a surprise presser on Friday to announce that he will be appointing a special counsel in the Hunter Biden case.
U.S. Attorney in Delaware, David Weiss, will reprise his role as lead prosecutor, but this time with the special counsel powers he was allegedly denied in the past.
JUST IN: Biden AG Merrick Garland appoints U.S. Attorney David Weiss as a special counsel in the Hunter Biden criminal investigation pic.twitter.com/HBaNDUUkh9
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 11, 2023
Garland: Weiss will continue to have “authority” and “responsibility” to oversee investigation AND “decide where, when, and whether to file charges.”
— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) August 11, 2023
Weiss remaining on the case is controversial given the allegations of corruption that have surrounded his office and the DOJ. A sweetheart plea deal that broke department protocol was originally given to Hunter Biden before a judge asked enough questions to expose it, leading to lawyers from both sides leaving empty-handed. Because of that ordeal, there’s not going to be much faith by many Americans in Weiss going forward that he will handle the case in an unbiased manner.
Still, there is reason to believe that this could point to more charges being filed against Hunter Biden. At this point, Weiss would only need special counsel privileges if he planned on filing in districts outside of Delaware. He was reportedly rebuffed in the past by U.S. Attorneys in Washington, D.C. and California. Now, Weiss does not need permission and could presumably bring a host of charges related to taxes and FARA violations in various jurisdictions.
With that said, there is speculation, founded in the DOJ’s past behavior, that the reason for this appointment could be more nefarious. Namely, Weiss’ elevation to special counsel insulates him from oversight measures taken by Congress. House Republicans had recently started lobbying to subpoena Weiss in a bid to get him to answer questions about how the Hunter Biden case has been handled. That was Jonathan Turley’s take on Fox News immediately following the announcement, though RedState doesn’t have video of that exchange yet.
In the end, it would have made much more sense for Garland to appoint someone outside of the DOJ to serve as the special counsel. By keeping Weiss in charge, the appearance of a cover-up remains, and there is every reason to not trust Garland or Weiss.
