Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday committed to holding accountable the perpetrators behind the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, while also affirming the Biden administration’s dedication to protecting the “right to every eligible citizen to cast a vote that counts.”
“The Justice Department remains committed to holding all Jan. 6 perpetrators, at any level, accountable under law — whether they were present that day or were otherwise criminally responsible for the assault on our democracy. We will follow the facts wherever they lead,” Garland said at the Department of Justice.
Garland recounted a summary of the violence experienced last year when former President Donald Trump called on his supporters to attend a speech outside the White House on Jan. 6, which later escalated into an assault on the Capitol building during Trump’s speech.
The attorney general thanked members of the public who contributed to the DOJ’s ongoing investigation into the riot, noting the department has received over 300,000 tips from “ordinary citizens” and investigators have searched through nearly “15 terabytes” of data surrounding the incident.
DEMOCRATS TURN ON MERRICK GARLAND OVER JUSTICE DEPARTMENT JAN. 6 APPROACH
Attorney General Merrick Garland vows that “the Justice Department remains committed to holding all January 6 perpetrators — at any level — accountable under law.” pic.twitter.com/BacBJJE2jC
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) January 5, 2022
During the attorney general’s address, he recounted the “repeated violent attacks” against outnumbered law enforcement officers during the Jan. 6 attack, noting some perpetrators used chemical agents and another officer was “repeatedly tased” and beaten, later suffering from a heart attack.
“By now, though, we have charged over 325 defendants with felonies, many for assaulting officers and many for corruptly obstructing or attempting to obstruct an official proceeding,” Garland said.
Garland later shifted course, saying the “protection of the Voting Rights Act have been drastically weakened” in recent years. Garland lamented the Supreme Court’s narrowing of federal voting rights protections in the Shelby County decision in 2013.
“It is essential that Congress acts to give the department the powers we need to ensure that every eligible voter can cast a vote that counts,” the attorney general added. Garland’s comments come as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has pressed to hold a vote regarding the Senate filibuster rules, an obstacle standing in the way of Democrats’ key voting rights legislation.
Matthew Miller, who was DOJ spokesman when Eric Holder was attorney general during the Biden administration, commended Garland’s speech in a tweet. But Miller noted, “He is more conservative than most AG’s would be.”
Miller added the speech still left questions unanswered, such as whether he believes if “organizing a coup is illegal under US criminal code? I.E. can Trump & co. possibly be prosecuted for it?”
Garland said to ensure all perpetrators are held accountable for the riot, “we must collect the evidence. We follow the physical evidence, we follow the digital evidence. We follow the money. But most importantly, we follow the facts, not an agenda or an assumption.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
President Joe Biden is expected to deliver a speech on Thursday to speak the “truth” of what happened on Jan. 6 last year, according to the White House.
