WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd February, 2021) The US Department of Justice should never be used to target political critics and opponents of any persuasion, Federal judge Merrick Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee in a confirmation hearing for his appointment as attorney general on Monday.
"It is totally inappropriate for the Department [of Justice] to target any individual for their politics or their position in a campaign. ... and it is my job to ensure that that is the case," Garland said.
Garland also said President Joe Biden in their discussions about him taking the job had made clear that the attorney general would have full, independent discretion about whom to investigate and prosecute for alleged crimes and that the president had never raised the issue of whether his own son Hunter Biden should or should not be investigated.
In 2016, Garland was nominated by President Barack Obama for the Supreme Court but the Republican majority controlling the Senate refused to let his nomination be discussed until Obama left office.
