The past eight years at the Department of Justice have been marked by significant missteps that have undermined the rule of law. The agency played a central role in promoting the Russia collusion hoax, which crippled President Donald Trump’s ability to govern throughout his first term, notes The Federalist editor Mollie Hemingway in a Monday column. In 2020, the DOJ also interfered in the election by falsely labeling a laptop containing damaging information about the Biden family business as Russian disinformation, pressuring social media platforms to censor discussion of the issue. Under President Joe Biden’s administration, the department pursued two highly politicized prosecutions against Trump, seeking to silence, financially drain, and politically defeat him.
Rather than addressing the corruption within the Department of Justice, much of the permanent D.C. establishment remained silent. So it came as a surprise to many when President-elect Donald Trump nominated Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-FL, as his choice for attorney general in his second term to reform the DOJ, she continued. Gaetz has emerged as one of the staunchest defenders against corruption at the DOJ, never backing down in the face of immense public pressure. However, his nomination has raised concerns due to his lack of traditional qualifications. Unlike many previous attorneys general, Gaetz doesn’t have the extensive legal background typically expected for the role.
“Many Americans are sick and tired of elected officials and media pundits doing nothing as DOJ attempted to destroy the country with its abuse of the rule of law. Among the many powerful figures in Washington, D.C. opposed to the Gaetz nomination are some who are attempting to thwart it by releasing a report from the House Ethics Committee that will attempt to tie Gaetz to salacious allegations involving child sex trafficking,” Hemingway wrote.
“The report comes years after DOJ dropped its investigation into the same claims on the grounds that the two central witnesses had serious credibility issues. Yet these are the same two central witnesses the House Ethics Committee has relied on for its critical report of Gaetz—the same report it is leaking to compliant reporters as part of a coordinated effort to thwart his nomination as President-elect Donald Trump’s next attorney general,” she noted further.
The two witnesses involved in the case face significant credibility issues. The claims stem from Joel Greenberg, who has been described as “one of the most corrupt Florida politicians of all time” by Florida reporter Marc Caputo, now associated with The Bulwark, a media outlet critical of Trump. Among the many offenses former Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg admitted to as part of a broad case for which he is serving 11 years in prison was falsely accusing political opponent Brian Beute of having sex with a minor, similar to the unsubstantiated claim he made against Gaetz, noted Hemingway. Greenberg also allegedly tried to frame his own attorney by planting pornographic images of children on his devices. A New York Times article about Greenberg was even titled, “Like the Tiger King Got Elected Tax Collector,” reflecting the bizarre nature of his actions, she said.
According to the Washington Post, Greenberg admitted to “fabricating allegations against a schoolteacher who was running against him to be a tax collector. Greenberg had sent letters to the school falsely claiming the teacher had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a student — a similar allegation to the Gaetz case.” U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell, appointed by President Bill Clinton, said Greenberg’s actions against that innocent victim were “downright evil.”
Hemingway adds:
The politicized employees at DOJ have shown themselves willing to explore novel legal theories and bend federal rules to the breaking point in pursuit of their most reviled political opponents, most notably former and future President Trump. Gaetz has a reputation as one of the most tenacious cross-examiners of DOJ officials from his perch on the House Judiciary Committee.
Yet even the DOJ was unwilling to exploit Greenberg’s unsubstantiated claims — apart from leaking them to the press to hurt Gaetz’s reputation. They announced their closure of the investigation in 2022. The House Ethics Committee, however, decided to pick up the dropped and deflated ball and run with it a full year after DOJ dropped the investigation. The fact that the disgraced Greenberg was cooperating with the House Ethics Committee was shared for publication with The New York Times and other media outlets.
The Department of Justice concluded that the individuals making accusations against Matt Gaetz had such significant credibility issues that they could not be charged with any crimes. Meanwhile, the House Ethics Committee has merely resurrected these same allegations from unreliable witnesses. Much like with the unfounded claims in the Democrat-funded Russia collusion dossier or the Washington Post’s baseless report against then-federal judge Brett Kavanaugh, it seems those in power in Washington are more focused on leveraging these accusations to undermine a political opponent than on verifying their truth, concludes Hemingway.
Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.