Watch Live: Garland Grilled Over Ray Epps, Hunter Biden Influence Peddling

Update (1250ET): AG Merrick Garland had few answers during a barrage of hard-hitting questions from Republicans, ranging from January 6th to investigating his boss, Joe Biden and family.

 

At one point, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) asked Garland why January 6th instigator Ray Epps was only charged with a misdemeanor, while the DOJ is “sending grandmas to prison.”

“You’re putting people away for 20 years for merely filming. Some weren’t even there but you got the guy on video saying go into the Capitol, he’s at the sight of first breach, and it’s an indictment on a misdemeanor,” he said.

To which Garland uncomfortably shifted in his seat and delivered a canned answer on Epps ‘not being employed by the FBI.’

Massie also grilled Garland on “mafia tactics” used against Elon Musk.

Garland was also grilled by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who asked Garland whether he could guarantee that people buying Hunter Biden’s ‘art’ weren’t doing so to gain political favors from the Bidens, as well as whether the Biden DOJ dissolved the Trump-era China initiative as a result of Hunter’s Chinese business deals.

According to Garland, he hasn’t interfered with the DOJ’s investigation of Hunter Biden, and never discussed the probe or received direction about it from anyone at the White House.

“Mr. Weiss has full authority to conduct his investigation however he wishes,” said Garland, referring to the US attorney in Delaware who was appointed special counsel.

“The determination of where to bring cases and what kind of cases to bring were left to Mr. Weiss,” claimed Garland.

Gaetz also asked Garland whether the DOJ ‘lost count’ of the number of federal assets present at the Capitol on January 6th, 2001.

More clips from the hearing:

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Biden Attorney General Merrick Garland is testifying before the House Judiciary Committee for the first time since a special counsel brought two criminal indictments against former President Donald Trump, and a sweetheart plea deal for Hunter Biden collapsed.

 

Chairman Jim Jordan opened the session.

Out of the gate, Garland says he won’t talk about discussions with David C. Weiss, the special counsel in the Hunter Biden case.

To review:

And now for the questions:

Garland also insisted that the DOJ doesn’t apply two standards of justice.

Watch live:

Come back for more updates…