On Wednesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland testified before Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee in regard to the Justice Department’s handling of the federal cases against Hunter Biden and former President Donald Trump.

Journalist and former Fox News writer, Kyle Becker, shared a portion of the hearing on X—an exchange between Chairman Jim Jordan (OH-R) and Attorney General Merrick Garland. Jordan reads a quote from Garland in reference to the appointment of Special Counsel David Weiss, the U.S. Attorney originally appointed to U.S. Attorney of Delaware by then-President Trump in 2017, who began his post in 2018. Jordan reads:

"Mr. Weiss has full authority to bring cases in other jurisdictions if he feels it's necessary." That was your response, Attorney General, to Senator Grassley's (IA-R) question on March 1, 2023, you just referenced It when Mr. Bishop was questioning you. Only problem is, he had already been turned down by the U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia, Mr. Graves. So [Weiss] didn't have full authority, did he?"

Garland responded, "I had an extended conversation with Senator Grassley. We briefly touched on the section 515 question and how that process went. I've never been suggest—"

Jordan rebutted, "My point is real simple, Mr. Garland, you said he had complete authority but he had already been turned down. He wanted to bring in action to the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Attorney there said, "No you can't." And then you go and tell the U.S. Senate under oath that he has complete authority?" 

"I'm going to say it again, no one had the authority to turn [Weiss] down, they could refuse to partner with him, they could not—"

"You can use whatever language, refusing to partner is turning down."

The New York Times reported that, "Mr. Garland repeatedly refused to answer questions about internal deliberations or offer explanations for decision-making in the investigation, or the two federal indictments of former President Donald J. Trump.

House Republicans view Mr. Garland as a linchpin as they seek to bolster an impeachment inquiry into President Biden that is grounded [in accusations] that he profited from the business dealings of his son, Hunter. They have suggested Mr. Garland also might face impeachment, or contempt charges, for not fully answering their questions or providing access to documents and witnesses they have demanded."

The hearing served as another stone to lay the groundwork for further investigations led by House Republicans into corruption of federal agencies and intelligence officers alike.