Attorney General Merrick Garland is expected to slam “repeated attacks” and “conspiracy” theories floated by Republicans about the Justice Department being weaponized against former President Donald Trump during his opening statements to Congress on Tuesday, according to prepared remarks shared with CNN.
Garland’s forceful defense of the department and federal law enforcement will begin what is likely to be a tense, hours-long hearing before members of the House Judiciary Committee. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. ET.
The attorney general has been called to Capitol Hill for a hearing on the department’s work under his leadership, including efforts to combat violent crime and investigate potential threats to the US stemming from conflicts abroad.
But Garland, who is at the center of Republican-led contempt proceedings and misleading comments about the FBI’s search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in 2022, is prepared to forcefully push back against critics.
Republicans are moving to try to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio tapes of the president’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated his handling of classified material and declined to bring charges.
Garland has publicly taken issue with Trump’s recent false claims about FBI agents being authorized to shoot him during the search in Florida.
In his most explicit comments since his confirmation in 2020, Garland will tell members of the House Judiciary Committee that recent and “repeated attacks on the Justice Department are unprecedented and unfounded.”
“Certain members of this Committee and the Oversight Committee are seeking contempt as a means of obtaining — for no legitimate purpose — sensitive law enforcement information that could harm the integrity of future investigations,” Garland will say, according to the prepared remarks.
Read more ahead of Garland’s congressional hearing.
