U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland is under pressure to fire one of his top employees after it was revealed that she lied during her Senate confirmation hearing.
According to Breitbart, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke "lied under oath and made efforts to cover up a past arrest during her confirmation fight in 2021."
That revelation caused several Republicans to call for her firing, including Sen. Tom Cotton (R-MO).
Cotton wrote a letter to AG Garland demanding that he fire Clarke for misreporting her criminal past.
"During her nomination to her current role, Ms. Clarke was asked if she had ‘ever been arrested for or accused of committing a violent crime against any person,'" the letter reads. "Ms. Clarke was unequivocal, responding under oath to the Senate Judiciary Committee, 'No.'"
"That was a lie," the letter read.
"Ms. Clarke has now admitted that she was arrested in 2006 for attacking and injuring someone with a knife. It has also recently come to light that, shortly before the full Senate voted on her nomination, Ms. Clarke and her publicist contacted the man she attacked in an attempt to cover up her false testimony," the letter continued.
NEW: @TomCottonAR calls on AG Garland to fire Kristen Clarke following our @DailySignal reporting:
“I call for Ms. Clarke’s immediate termination and removal from office.” pic.twitter.com/XbqUBp9OjO
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) July 12, 2024
Clarke issued a statement to CNN defending her past, arguing that she wasn't required to disclose it because it had been wiped from her record.
"Clarke acknowledged that she was arrested in her statement on Wednesday but said the arrest was expunged – meaning it was removed from her record and no longer exists – and that she wasn’t required to disclose it," the exclusive statement to CNN said.
Social media users reacted to Cotton's demand for her firing.
"Garland has made it known that he and his office will not be accountable to Congress, so rave on to no avail," on X user wrote.
Another X user wrote, "Hmm, aren’t there a couple of SCOTUS justices that lied during their confrontations?"
Only time will tell if AG Garland complies, but it's highly doubtful he'll follow the demands of a Repblican senator.
