Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) clashed with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday.
The Texas senator accused Garland of failing to protect the Supreme Court justices who voted in favor of the Dobbs decision last year — the landmark Supreme Court case that overturned Roe v. Wade.
“In the wake of the leak of the Dobbs decision, when rioters descended on the home of six Supreme Court justices night after night after night, you did nothing,” Cruz said to the attorney general. “The department did nothing.”
Cruz said that when “extremist groups” like Ruth Sent Us and Jane’s Revenge organized protests at the justices’ homes and publicized information about the justices’ home addresses, places of worship, and where their children went to school, Garland did not act.
“You sat on your hands and did nothing,” he exclaimed. “Your failure to act and protect the safety of the justices and their families was an obvious product of political bias. You agree with Roe v. Wade. You disagree with the Dobbs decision, and the Justice Department under this president was perfectly happy to refuse to enforce the law and allow threats of violence.”
Those threats “materialized,” as Cruz put it, when Nicholas John Roske, 26, reportedly traveled from California to Kavanaugh’s Maryland home on June 8 in an alleged assassination attempt that was intercepted by law enforcement.
As the senator noted, protesting “with the intent of influencing any judge” or near “a building or residence occupied or used by such judge” is prohibited under federal law — 18 U.S. Code § 1507.
“Did the Department of Justice decide this law doesn’t apply if its harassing justices for an opinion we don’t like?” Cruz asked.
Garland defended his actions and his leadership of the DOJ, saying, “When the Dobbs draft was leaked, I did something no attorney general in the history of the department had done before.”
“For the first time in history, I ordered United States marshals 24/7 to defend every residence of every justice,” he said.
Cruz pressed Garland further, questioning whether the DOJ is prosecuting any cases under 18 U.S. Code § 1507. Garland continued to reaffirm his efforts to protect the justices but did not directly answer this question.
“Why are you unwilling to say no?” Cruz asked in the heated exchange. “The answer’s no. You know it’s no. I know it’s no. Everyone in this hearing room knows it’s no. You’re not willing to answer a question. Have you brought a case under this statute? Yes or no?”
“As far as I know, we haven’t,” Garland admitted. Cruz asked how the attorney general decides which criminal statutes the DOJ enforces.
Garland replied that the decision of whether to make an arrest is made by the marshals on the scene, but Cruz emphasized that the marshals have no prosecuting power and that decision-making power lies with the attorney general.
This interrogation occurred during a hearing in which Senate Republicans questioned Garland on several other matters, including the DOJ’s investigation into Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden.
This hearing was the first time Garland had testified before the 118th Congress. Garland is expected to undergo additional hearings with the House Judiciary Committee soon.
Cruz’s office declined to provide additional comment beyond the senator’s public remarks.
Garland is a political hack. Protecting Democrats and prosecuting conservatives. Thank God he is not on the SCOTUS. At least he can be booted after Biden.