Special Counsel David Weiss, the U.S. Attorney for Delaware who has been leading a years-long investigation of Hunter Biden, testified behind closed doors to the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday in regard to certain aspects related to that ongoing criminal probe.
Weiss, who was appointed special counsel in August, reportedly acknowledged during his testimony that he had asked for -- but obviously did not receive -- certain special attorney authorities as far back as the spring of 2022, according to the Daily Caller.
That admission appears to confirm the sworn testimony earlier this year of an IRS whistleblower while it simultaneously seems to contradict dubious prior assertions from Attorney General Merrick Garland and Weiss himself about the level of charging authority he actually possessed.
IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley, who was previously part of the Hunter Biden investigation, testified under oath to the House Ways and Means Committee in May and helped expose the Justice Department's efforts to forestall that probe and grant preferential treatment to President Joe Biden's son.
Per the committee, Shapley recalled an Oct. 7, 2022 meeting, for which he kept contemporaneous notes, in which Weiss revealed to the investigative team that he had "sought special counsel status from DOJ in the Spring of 2022 and was denied."
That request for special counsel status, which would grant Weiss the authority to file charges in any jurisdiction, had been deemed necessary after requests from Weiss for cooperation from the Biden-appointed U.S. Attorneys in California and Washington D.C. on bringing charges against the president's son in their jurisdictions were similarly denied.
However, the committee noted that prior to Weiss gaining the special counsel designation in August and the broad authority that came with it, AG Garland had testified in March 2023, seemingly falsely, that Weiss had always had the "full authority" to bring charges anywhere outside of his own jurisdiction in Delaware.
Weiss himself, perhaps misleadingly, also indicated in a pair of letters in June and July 2023 that he had "ultimate authority" to bring charges anywhere despite not being designated as a special counsel at that time, though he also seemed to suggest to the contrary that his claimed power was geographically limited, per the Daily Caller.
Following the House Judiciary Committee's transcribed interview with Special Counsel Weiss on Tuesday, Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) told reporters, "When he was specifically asked, did you ever request special attorney authority under Section 515, Mr. Weiss's response was yes, in the spring of 2022. So that goes to the heart of the matter."
Jordan pointed out the prior inconsistencies in Weiss' letters about his authority and special counsel status, and said, "So to me, that's the key takeaway. He won't answer a lot of questions. But that's the key takeaway, because this whole deposition was about the changing story we got from DOJ, regarding the authority that he had."
"And that answer, I think the key is, is entirely consistent with what Mr. Shapley said after the October 7, 2022 meeting, when he said USA Weiss requested Special Counsel authority when it was sent to DC and Main DOJ denied his request and told him to follow the process," the chairman added.
Jordan further noted that the sworn testimony provided previously by Shapley and another IRS whistleblower "continues to stand up to every single witness we brought in for an interview."
On Wednesday, in response to the breaking news that congressional subpoenas had been issued for Hunter Biden, James Biden, and another Biden associate as part of a multi-committee investigation, Rep. Jordan posted, "President Biden and his administration have continually changed their stories throughout this inquiry. You know who’s been consistent? The IRS whistleblowers."
"With each piece of evidence we gather, their whistleblower accounts are corroborated. These subpoenas are a necessary next step as House Republicans deliver accountability for the American people," he added.
