Republican lawmakers and officials accused the Biden administration on Monday night of weaponizing the Justice Department for political ends after former President Donald Trump revealed that the FBI had searched his Florida home.
Allies backed Trump's claim that the search of a former president's home was politically motivated, with some vowing to take action on Capitol Hill.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, said the Justice Department had reached an intolerable state of weaponized politicization and vowed that Republicans would conduct oversight of the department if they win back the chamber in the November midterm elections.
Attorney General Garland, keep your documents and clear your calendar, McCarthy said in a statement.
The search was part of the Biden administration's going after its political opponents, without any supporting details, according to Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, the Senate GOP's campaign arm. Scott demanded answers about the FBI's actions, insisting that the bureau must explain what they were doing today, and he said that they had to explain what they were doing today. The search was tied to classified documents Trump took with him from the White House to his Palm Beach resort in January 2021, according to a source familiar with the matter.
A separate source said that the Trump team s understanding is that the investigation is related to the transfer of documents from the White House to Mar-a-Lago and that agents seized several boxes of documents.
The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Ronna McDaniel, suggested that the FBI activity was a partisan attack.
The only way to stop Democrats is to elect Republicans in November, because there are many examples of Democrats flouting the law and abusing power with no recourse, McDaniel said. There were concerns about the potential electoral implications, both in November and in 2024, raised by other Republicans.
We are 100 days away from midterm elections. No one is above the law. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said the law must be above politics. An investigation of a former President this close to an election is beyond problematic. The Republicans who are considered potential White House contenders in 2024 also weighed in.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested that the search was another escalation in an effort to wield political power against the administration's adversaries, while people like Hunter Biden get treated with kid gloves. Kristi Noem said investigations into Trump by the agency over the years were un-American and that there was an unprecedented political weaponization of the Justice Department. A spokesman for the Justice Department declined to comment on the FBI search, and the White House said it was not given a heads up.
A White House official said that they did not have a notice of the reported action and would refer you to the Justice Department for any additional information.