Attorney General Merrick Garland has continued to snub ex-President Donald Trump’s fantasy that President Joe Biden tried to assassinate him with the FBI. However, he refused an invitation to directly call Trump out via Mediaite.
It has been noted that Trump has been fundraising on the increasingly fantastical scenario based on the false claim that the FBI raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort was an assassination attempt.
The basis for the claim is standard language in the raid’s operation order that originated from a filing by Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Chris Kise that contains a key misquote of the guidance in the operation order.
Garland has appeared at a Justice Department oversight hearing before the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee, which has threatened contempt actions against Garland.
Ranking Member Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) questioned Garland to weigh in on the assassination falsehood, which Garland called out as untrue. However, he hesitated when Nadler tried to put a finer point on Trump’s promotion of the lie:
REP. JERRY NADLER: Throughout the 118th Congress, Republicans have made bogus allegations claiming that the Justice Department has been weaponized.
Most recently, there was an allegation that the FBI was authorized to, quote, kill the former president.
What impact does this type of rhetoric have on the career prosecutors and law enforcement agents at the Department of Justice?
AG MERRICK GARLAND: This is dangerous! It raises the threats of violence against prosecutors and career agents.
The allegation is false. As the FBI has explained, the document that’s being discussed is our standard use of force, protocol, which is a limitation on the use of force and which is routinely part of the package for search warrants and was part of the package for the search of President Biden’s home as well.
REP. JERRY NADLER: So when president — former President Trump alleges that this was an assassination attempt against him. He is not telling the truth, either knowingly or, as is often the case with him, unknowingly.
AG MERRICK GARLAND: I’m just saying that the allegation is not true.
This is our standard use of force policy, which limits the use of force that agents can use. It is used as routine matter and searches. That was a court-authorized search. And it accompanied that package, as it routinely does.
REP. JERRY NADLER: Thank you. So in other words, when former President Trump makes that allegation, he is either deliberately or, as is often the case, not knowing what he’s– either deliberately lying or, as is often the case, not knowing what he’s talking about.
