During a Wednesday hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas got into a heated fight with Biden’s Attorney General, failed Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland.
That heated showdown came when Senator Cruz accused AG Gardland of politicizing the DOJ. Particularly, Cruz accused Garland of using the DOJ as a weapon against pro-life groups, prosecuting them far more aggressively than liberal groups.
As evidence of that, Cruz brought up the leftist protesters that protested outside the homes of conservative Supreme Court Justices in direct violation of US law once the Dobbs opinion was leaked. Cruz asked AG Garland if any of those leftists have been arrested, asking “Have you brought a single case against any of these protesters threatening [Justice Brett Kavanaugh]? Have you brought even one?”
AG Garland, already obviously furious, snapped back “Senator, you asked me whether I sat on my hands and, quite the opposite. I sent 70 United States Marshals to defend—”
That’s when Sen. Cruz cut Garland off, demanding he answer the question and asking “Let me try again. Has the Department of Justice brought even a single case under the statute? It’s a yes-no question. It’s not an [invitation to] give a speech on those other things you did.”
Predictably, Garland again didn’t give a real response, instead saying “The jobs of the United States Marshals is to defend the lives of—”
Again Cruz cut him off when it was evident he wouldn’t give a real answer, saying “So the answer is no. The answer is no. Why aren’t you willing to say 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 the question. Have you brought a case under the statute, yes or no?”
AG Garland was then backed into saying the answer Cruz obviously wanted him to, admitting “As far as I know, we haven’t. What we have done is defended the lives of the justices with 70 U.S. Marshals.”
Things got even more fiery when Cruz said “I recognize you want to give a separate speech. How do you decide which statutes you enforce and which ones you don’t?”
Garland did his usual, saying “The Marshals on scene make that determination in light of the priority of —”
A furious Sen. Cruz snapped “The Marshals do not make a determination on whether to prosecute. You the attorney general, make a determination and you spent 20 years as a judge, and you’re perfectly content with Justices being afraid for their children’s lives and you did nothing to prosecute it.”
Garland, equally upset, snapped “Can I answer the question!?” Cruz, in response, snapped right back at him, saying “No, you cannot. You have refused to answer the question.”
Watch that here:
Fox News Digital reports that the fiery back and forth came after Sen. Mike Lee demanded similar answers and got similar fudging and non-responses, reporting:
The fiery exchange came just minutes after Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, also blasted Garland for failing to prosecute attacks on pro-life groups and Catholic churches across the country. Lee pressed Garland to explain why just two people had been charged with violence against pro-life groups despite more than 200 incidents being reported in the past year.
Garland responded that it was easier to prosecute violations at abortion clinics because those offenses typically take place during the day and are often filmed. Attacks on pro-life centers typically take place at night, he said.
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