Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) does not think much of the appointment of US Attorney David Weiss as special counsel in the Justice Department’s investigation into Hunter Biden, the president’s son.
Attorney General Merrick Garland “knows that Weiss will protect Hunter,” Blackburn sneered in a social media post on Saturday.
But Weiss’ appointment is exactly what she and other Republicans in Congress have been calling for. “Special Counsel” is the same term Garland gave to Jack Smith, who is currently prosecuting former President Donald Trump.
Last September, a group of 31 Senate Republicans, including Blackburn, specifically requested that Weiss will be tasked with overseeing the investigation to “provide additional assurances to the American people that the investigation into Hunter Biden is free from political influence.” Weiss had already led the investigation into his business relationships started under President Donald Trump.
Republicans on the side of the House of Representatives sent a similar letter in April 2022, although they did not name Weiss. Blackburn and two other Republican senators reiterated their call for a special counsel two months ago.
Now that their wish has come true, some are complaining.
This week Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-Ga.) criticized the appointment, despite signing the letter last fall.
“This is a political decision by the Biden administration to solve its political problem. I think they’ve poured gasoline on the political fire,” Graham said said News Nation.
He added: “Mr. Weiss’ team needs to be replaced with new eyes.”
Senator Chuck Grassley expressed similar criticism at the time speaking to Fox News after confirming that he also signed the letter last year.
“I have some questions about Weiss,” Grassley said.
Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy suggested on social media that the appointment would be used to “whitewash the Biden family’s corruption.”
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) echoed those words a statement to CNN: “David Weiss cannot be trusted, and this is just a new way to whitewash the Biden family’s corruption.”
It’s worth noting that some Republicans — like former Vice President Mike Pence — endorsed the appointment, though they said they were less likely to do so openly, the statement said Reporting by the New York Times.
Others appear to have resented Weiss for being the one who brokered the plea deal with Biden that fell dramatically in court earlier this summer.
“If Weiss brokered the sweetheart deal that couldn’t be approved, how can he be trusted as a special counsel?” McCarthy said in his post.
In late July, the president’s son entered federal court where he was scheduled to plead guilty to gun crimes under a deal with prosecutors. However, he pleaded not guilty following the verdict of US District Judge Maryellen Noreika questioned the wording in the agreement. Republicans had reacted in disbelief to the news of the plea deal, claiming Biden would receive preferential treatment.
Weiss’ appointment as special counsel suggests the investigation may go to trial — possibly in a year when Joe Biden is running for re-election.