Impeaching Merrick Brian Garland, Attorney General of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

Bill: 117-hres-743
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Perry, Scott [R-PA-10]
Introduced: 2021-10-22
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Latest action: action_date: 2021-10-22
text: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-10-22
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>This resolution impeaches Attorney General Merrick Garland for high crimes and misdemeanors relating to investigating threats against school personnel and to a conflict of interest.</p>

tv_txt: IV 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 743 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 22, 2021 Mr. Perry (for himself and Mr. Biggs ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary RESOLUTION Impeaching Merrick Brian Garland, Attorney General of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

That Merrick Brian Garland, Attorney General, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors and that the following Articles of Impeachment be exhibited to the United States Senate: Articles of Impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America in the name of itself and of the people of the United States of America, against Merrick Brian Garland, Attorney General, in maintenance and support of its impeachment against him for high crimes and misdemeanors. Article I Merrick Brian Garland, in his conduct while Attorney General, engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his duties as an Officer of the United States, as follows: Attorney General Garland took an oath to defend and secure our country and uphold the Constitution when he was sworn in as Attorney General on March 11, 2021. Article II of the U.S. Constitution tasks the executive branch—which today includes the Attorney General—with ensuring the laws passed by Congress and signed into law by the President are faithfully executed. Attorney General Garland has failed to faithfully uphold his oath and has instead presided over a reckless and corrosive politicization of the Department of Justice at the expense of our Nation’s children. On September 29, 2021, the National School Boards Association (NSBA) sent a letter to President Biden requesting a joint expedited review by the U.S. Departments of Justice, Education, and Homeland Security examining appropriate enforceable actions against alleged threats to school boards under Federal statutes including the USA PATRIOT Act ( Public Law 107–56 ). The USA PATRIOT Act gave the Federal Government expansive authority to violate the civil liberties of everyday Americans, via methods including wiretapping; bulk collection of telephone metadata and other records; warrantless surveillance; sweeping powers of detention; investigations into lawful First Amendment activity; and the expanded use of National Security Letters. The Act has been used to investigate non-terrorism offenses, such as drug trafficking and copyright infringement. It was also unsuccessfully used to justify placing a GPS tracking device on an alleged drug trafficker in violation of the Fourth Amendment and secretly search homes and offices without probable cause. The Act also expanded the use of National Security Letters, which the Department of Justice has abused to obtain information outside the scope of suspected terrorist activities and without due process. A 2007 Department of Justice Office of Inspector General report found that the FBI obtained telephone records on over 700 occasions without even issuing an NSL or a grand jury subpoena. That report also found that the FBI used NSLs in violation of existing statutes and departmental guidelines and policies. On October 4, 2021, the Department of Justice released a memorandum from Attorney General Garland promising to announce a series of measures designed to address the alleged rise in criminal conduct toward school personnel, including opening dedicated lines of communication for threat reporting. Attorney General Garland’s memo made no mention of the statutory authority or authorities the Department would use to address those threats. The numerous, well-documented abuses of the PATRIOT Act and other domestic terrorism statutes—often in contravention of Americans’ First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendment rights—should preclude them from consideration in addressing unfounded and uninvestigated threats to school personnel. Their misuse by the Department of Justice will lead to a chilling effect on the protected speech of parents who wish to express legitimate concerns about their children’s education and safety, such as in the case of a father seeking answers in October 2021 after a male teenager allegedly raped and sodomized his daughter in a bathroom at a high school in Loudoun County, Virginia, which was cited as a specific example of school violence in the September 2021 National School Boards Association’s letter. State school boards associations have likened this approach to Federal overreach and have expressed worries about its possible suppression of First Amendment activity. While the September 29, 2021, NSBA letter cited media reports about Virginia school board meetings, an October 6, 2021, press release by the Virginia School Boards Association emphasized that they did not seek the involvement of Federal law enforcement officials in local decisions. Similarly, an October 11, 2021, Florida School Boards Association letter underscored the importance of free speech and their reliance on local and State law enforcement. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association voted to cancel its membership in the National School Boards Association entirely. Furthermore, devoting valuable Department of Justice resources to demonizing parents expressing constitutional speech—such as questions about alleged sexual assaults—as domestic terrorists would dangerously limit the credibility and ability of the Department of Justice to prosecute verifiable terrorist threats. Attorney General Garland’s failure to explicitly denounce the use of this statute will hamper legitimate First Amendment activity aimed at protecting American children and improving our Nation’s schools while decreasing the resources available to pursue actual terrorists. Wherefore, Merrick Brian Garland, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial, and removal from office. Article II Merrick Brian Garland, in his conduct while Attorney General, engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his duties as an Officer of the United States, as follows: Attorney General Garland took an oath to defend and secure our country and uphold the Constitution when he was sworn in as Attorney General on March 11, 2021. Article II of the U.S. Constitution tasks the executive branch—which today includes the Attorney General—with ensuring the laws passed by Congress and signed into law by the President are faithfully executed. Attorney General Garland has failed to faithfully uphold his oath and has by his actions, validated the belief of many Americans that the Department of Justice has been transformed into an unstoppable, partisan, Federal weapon used to officially punish political opponents. In an October 4, 2021, memorandum, Attorney General Garland announced that the Department of Justice would address alleged criminal conduct of lawful First Amendment activities objecting, among other things, to the teaching of equity , inclusion , and critical race theory concepts in public school districts. Attorney General Garland’s son-in-law is the co-founder of Panorama Education, which contracts with school districts to survey students on topics including social-emotional learning and equity and inclusion . Panorama Education’s investors include Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. According to its website, the company has previously contracted with the Hawaii Department of Public Education and the Fresno Unified School District. On June 8, 2021, Panorama Education was awarded a $1.8 million contract by Fairfax County Public Schools to conduct surveys on topics including race and inclusion and implement interventions . On September 9, 2021, the contract was increased to $2.4 million. Despite Attorney General Garland’s close personal relationship with an individual who stands to financially benefit from the promotion of equity , inclusion , and critical race theory concepts in public school curricula—and the suppression of dissenting opinions—Attorney General Garland has not addressed this obvious conflict of interest. This lack of action runs counter to the steps that career service executive branch officials, including Department of Justice employees, must take to avoid an appearance of loss of impartiality , which include recusal from related matters and consultation with an agency ethics official (5 CFR 2635.502). Attorney General Garland’s failure to address a possible conflict of interest demonstrates that he is unfit to hold the office of Attorney General. Wherefore, Merrick Brian Garland, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial, and removal from office.