Joe Biden 'Frustrated' With Attorney General Merrick Garland Over His Handling of the DOJ: Report
Feb. 10 2024, Published 12:30 p.m. ET
President Joe Biden has reportedly expressed his "growing frustration" with Attorney General Merrick Garland, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The tensions between the two have arisen on a number of issues, including Biden's retention of classified documents, the prosecution of his son, Hunter Biden, and the investigation into former President Donald Trump.
Special Counsel Robert Hur, appointed by Garland, released a detailed report on Thursday, February 8, regarding Biden's retention of classified documents from his time as a senator and vice president.
Hur concluded that the president should not face criminal charges, partly due to his age and memory struggles. This conclusion was met with anger from Biden, who held a press conference at the White House to defend his memory and criticize Hur for mentioning his late son in the report.
“My memory is fine,” President Biden said during the press conference. “Take a look at what I’ve done since I’ve become president. None of you thought I could pass any of the things I got passed. How’d that happen? You know, I guess I just forgot what was going on.”
Biden and his advisers believe Hur went beyond his role and included unnecessary and misleading descriptions in his report. They also believe that Garland should have demanded edits to the report.
"We do not believe that the report's treatment of President Biden's memory is accurate or appropriate," President Biden’s special and personal counsel responded. "The report uses highly prejudicial language to describe a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events."
Additionally, White House staffers have questioned Garland's decision to appoint a special counsel in the first place.
According to Politico, the president is "frustrated" with the Department of Justice's handling of the investigation into his son Hunter.
The First Son is currently facing a nine-count indictment for tax offenses. The president is concerned about the length of time the investigation is taking and believes that it may negatively impact his son's well-being.
Biden's frustration doesn't end there. He reportedly complained about Garland's slow initiation of an investigation into Trump.
The former president and current frontrunner to be the GOP nominee for president in 2024 is facing federal charges in Florida, New York, Georgia and Washington, D.C., for retaining government material and attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election, among other charges. Biden believes that if Garland had acted sooner, a trial could have already been underway.
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The Department of Justice declined to comment on the matter.