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It was 10 months ago when Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Jack Smith to serve as special counsel in the investigations into Donald Trump’s alleged crimes. It was eight months ago when Garland also appointed Robert Hur to serve as special counsel in the investigation into President Biden’s classified documents.
And it was today when the attorney general appointed the third special counsel of his tenure. NBC News reported:
U.S. Attorney David Weiss will be appointed special counsel in the ongoing probe of the president’s son, Hunter Biden, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday. Weiss will be responsible for the “ongoing investigation” of President Joe Biden’s son “as well as for any other matters that arose or may arise from that investigation,” the Justice Department said in a statement. Weiss asked to be appointed special counsel on Tuesday and Garland agreed it was “in the public interest” to do so, the attorney general said.
If Weiss’ name sounds at all familiar, there’s a good reason for that: He’s the same federal prosecutor who’s overseen the Hunter Biden probe for years. He’s also a U.S. attorney who was tapped for his role by Donald Trump and confirmed by a Republican-led Senate.
Weiss previously made no request to be made a special counsel, though that apparently changed this week. The details behind the shift are unclear, though it’s worth emphasizing that the recent plea deal in this case appears to have collapsed.
On the surface, these developments might appear to be in line with Republicans’ wishes. By elevating Weiss, Garland is further guaranteeing prosecutorial independence in this case. It hardly seems necessary — Weiss was already operating free of political interference — but if the attorney general wants to go the extra mile to address unjustified GOP criticisms, so be it.
Republicans, most notably House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, have practically begged for a special counsel in this case, and now they have what they were looking for, right?
Not exactly. The problem is, the GOP voices who demanded a special counsel are the same GOP voices who believe Weiss — the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney — isn’t a reliable ally. Indeed, he’s already told Republicans truths they didn’t want to hear about the investigation.
With this in mind, less than an hour after the attorney general’s announcement today, Jordan’s office condemned the move, insisting, “David Weiss can’t be trusted.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a related statement, arguing that the appointment of the Trump-appointed prosecutor is part of a "coverup." (I don't understand what that's supposed to mean in this context, either.)
What's more, The New York Times’ Charlie Savage raised a good point about the political circumstances, adding, “It is not clear whether this step will change anything substantive about the Hunter Biden investigation, since Garland and Weiss have already described the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney as operating with significant independence. But Republicans have sought to portray the Biden administration as conspiring to go easy on the president’s son, so at a minimum the naming of Weiss as a special counsel will offer Democrats an additional argument to rebut those accusations.”
All of which is to say, if the attorney general expects this latest move to help rebut Republican criticisms and make his partisan detractors happy, Garland will likely be disappointed to see a new round of GOP complaints.
Update: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Donald Trump's political operation have also criticized Weiss' appointment.