While US Attorney David Weiss of Delaware insisted in an oath that he had “ultimate power” to seek charges against the first son, Hunter Biden, he contacted Justice Department officials about congressional demands for information about his five-year investigation. Weiss’s office spoke with the Department of Justice’s Office of Legislative Affairs and Office of Legal Counsel through email about how to react to inquiries from Republican members of the House of Representatives.
Despite the many redactions, the texts suggest that top Justice Department officials volunteered to “take the lead” from Weiss in crafting replies to Republican senators who brought up Hunter’s case.
On May 9, 2022, Senators Chuck Grassley and Ron Johnson wrote to Weiss, asking for details on the Hunter probe; his office then exchanged letters with the Office of Legislative Affairs (OLA).
Weiss received a communication from Assistant US Attorney Shannon Hanson on June 2, 2022, in which Hanson promised to forward the information to [redacted]. Assistant US Attorney Shannon Hanson revealed OLA’s involvement later that day.
The OLA informed Senators Grassley and Johnson on June 9, 2022, that under Justice Department protocol, the agency would be unable to comment on the status of an active investigation. A series of emails sent by Weiss to his staff in June and July 2022 indicate his decision to “not react” to the Republicans’ letter until he reportedly heard back from the Justice Department. Another request from Grassley and Johnson was refused on July 8, 2022; in an email to Weiss’ office that day, the OLA said it would “take the lead in drafting a response for the Department.”
Prosecutors in Weiss’ office are constantly updating each other on the investigation’s progress, as seen by emails dated December 7, 2020, when The Post reported that Representative Ken Buck (R-Colorado) had requested that Attorney General Bill Barr appoint a special counsel. Despite Department of Justice laws stating that a special counsel must come from outside the government, Garland appointed Weiss on August 11.
Heritage’s Oversight Project, which filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the DOJ to obtain the messages, claims that they disprove Weiss’ claim that he was given “ultimate authority” to bring charges in the case on June 7, 2023. After receiving the first batch of court-ordered disclosures this past Friday, the Oversight Project anticipates receiving the second batch of redacted papers by October 31 as part of its records request.
