In his opening statement at the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., tore into Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, the committee chairman, for touting "completely refuted" claims in his own opening remarks.
Appearing before the committee Wednesday morning was Attorney General Merrick Garland, who delivered testimony clarifying his duties in the Biden administration and defending the Justice Department's investigation into Hunter Biden. Republicans have claimed that President Joe Biden's son, who was indicted on gun charges last week, had received special treatment from a "two-tier justice system" while former President Donald Trump has been made a target of partisan prosecution.
After Jordan's opening statement, Nadler dug into the Ohio Republican, raising two points about Jordan's comments at the outset of his own statement.
"One: Just about every assertion you made in your opening statement has been completely refuted by witnesses who have testified before this committee," Nadler began. "Two: Far from being favored, many commentators have noted that people accused of simple gun possession while under the influence of a drug, when that gun was not used in the commission of a crime, are rarely, if ever, prosecuted the way Hunter Biden is being prosecuted."
Nadler went on to further reprimand Republicans for calling Garland to testify, noting the committee's responsibility to "ensure that the DOJ uses the enormous amount of power it is granted in a fair and just manner that respects the civil and human rights of all Americans." He then accused GOP hardliners of straying from that duty in detracting from more pressing matters like gun violence, drug trafficking and tax and civil rights.
"Extreme MAGA Republicans have poisoned our vital oversight work. They've ignored our legitimate oversight responsibilities and used their power to stage one political stunt after another," Nadler said. "They have wasted countless taxpayer dollars on baseless investigations into President Biden and his family, desperate to find evidence for an absurd impeachment, and desperate to distract from the mounting legal peril facing Donald Trump."
Watch below, via MSNBC:
