Department of Justice (DOJ) News
Coverage of DOJ investigations, leadership, and political influence. Includes conservative commentary and opinion from The Daily Signal.
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Justice Department Says It Agrees With Judge Who Ruled Obamacare Unconstitutional
The Department of Justice sided with a district court ruling Monday that found the Affordable Care Act violated the Constitution. U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor issued the ruling in December 2018, finding that the Obamacare individual mandate had been rendered unconstitutional due to the partial repeal Republicans passed in 2017. The ruling has been appealed to…Anders Hagstrom -
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Graham Calls for New Special Counsel to Probe Justice Department
Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., announced his committees will launch a probe into the Justice Department’s alleged abuse of spying, widely believed to be the predicate for investigations into alleged ties between President Donald Trump and Russia. “I’m going to get answers to this. If no one else cares, it seems that Republicans do,”…Fred Lucas -
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House Republicans Urge Sending Cohen Case to Justice Department for Alleged Perjury
Two leading House Republicans are ramping up pressure on House Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings to refer the case of former Trump attorney Michael Cohen to the Justice Department because of allegations that he perjured himself during congressional testimony. Republicans Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan and North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows claimed in their letter that Cohen…Chuck Ross -
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Justice Department Investigators Unable to Find Peter Strzok’s Text Messages During Mueller Probe, Report Says
Department of Justice investigators were unable to recover text messages Peter Strzok and Lisa Page sent during their short tenure on the special counsel’s investigation, according to a report released Thursday by the DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General. According to the inspector general report, iPhones issued by the Special Counsel’s Office to Strzok and Page…Chuck Ross -
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Justice Department Memo Says Whitaker Appointment Is Legal
The Department of Justice issued an advisory opinion confirming the legality of Matthew Whitaker’s appointment as acting attorney general Wednesday, as legal authorities across the ideological spectrum suggested the move violated a federal statute and the Constitution. The memo, prepared by the Office of Legal Counsel, reveals that the Justice Department previously counseled President Donald Trump on…Kevin Daley -
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Jeff Sessions Put the Justice Department Back on Course
There is no question that Attorney General Jeff Sessions—who was fired Wednesday—had a rocky relationship with President Donald Trump, tied to Sessions’ recusal from the investigation of Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible collusion with the Trump campaign. But Sessions’ firing on orders of Trump should not diminish the fact that…Hans von Spakovsky -
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How the Justice Department Is Getting Smarter on Corporate Crime
The Department of Justice recently issued a revamped policy for using and selecting corporate monitors to resolve criminal matters with corporations and businesses. Corporate monitors are private firms—such as law firms and consulting companies—selected by the government to act as an internal regulator within corporations and businesses that the Justice Department has accused of, or…Jonathan Zalewski -
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Justice Department Weighs In to Protect Free Speech on Campus
In the face of Orwellian speech codes on campus—and with the help of advocacy groups like Speech First Inc.—college students have been fighting to defend their First Amendment right to free speech. Now, they can count the Justice Department as one of their strongest allies. Earlier this year, the University of Michigan passed a policy…Hans von Spakovsky -
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Justice Department Lays Down the Law on ‘Unconstitutional’ University of Michigan Speech Policies
The Justice Department has filed court papers against the University of Michigan in a lawsuit alleging the school’s speech policies violate students’ free speech rights. Following through on a priority of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the Justice Department statement of interest filed Monday alleges that the University of Michigan has an “unconstitutional” statement of student rights and responsibilities….Rob Shimshock -
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DOJ Watchdog Sets Release Date for Clinton Email Report
The Department of Justice’s internal watchdog will release its much-anticipated report about the Hillary Clinton email investigation next Thursday. DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz informed the Senate Committee on the Judiciary that the report will be released in anticipation of a hearing he will attend on June 18. A day after the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing,…Chuck Ross -
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Report: 93% of Immigrants in Justice Department Custody Are Here Illegally
Anibel Rondolpho Rodriguez, an illegal immigrant from Honduras and member of the MS-13 criminal gang in Freeport, New York, was sentenced to 45 years in prison last fall after pleading guilty to racketeering charges, two murder conspiracies, two attempted murders, and threatening to commit assault. As with more than 1 in 5 of his fellow…Fred Lucas -
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Justice Department Funded ‘Parent’ of Group Whose App Helps Illegal Immigrants
An organization whose parent group received taxpayer funds developed and offers an app that allows illegal immigrants to notify family and lawyers when they encounter law enforcement. The app, a computer program designed to run on a cell phone or other mobile device, also allows the user to warn other illegal immigrants when authorities are…Fred Lucas -
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DOJ Gives Congress Missing Strzok-Page Text Messages
The Justice Department on Thursday gave Congress five months worth of text messages exchanged between Peter Strzok and Lisa Page—two FBI officials involved in the investigations into Hillary Clinton and President Donald Trump’s campaign. The messages, exchanged between Dec. 14, 2016, and May 17, 2017, were initially thought to be missing due to a technical…Chuck Ross -
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Republicans Call for Justice Department Investigation Into Comey, Clinton, Others
A group of House Republicans has called for the Department of Justice to investigate a laundry list of former agency heads and people involved in the investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s private email server. The letter is addressed to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and U.S. Attorney for the District of…Robert Donachie -
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Calls Grow for Second Special Counsel to Probe Justice Department Conduct
Lying to Congress, misleading a special surveillance court, and failing to disclose conflicts of interest are among possible wrongdoing that a second special counsel could investigate in connection with allegations of a politicized, partisan Justice Department. As special counsel Robert Mueller continues his investigation of alleged collusion with Russia by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, congressional…Fred Lucas -
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Senate Panel Calls for Special Counsel to Investigate DOJ Handling of Dossier
Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee are formally calling for a second special counsel to investigate the FBI and Justice Department’s handling of the Steele dossier. The Republicans, led by Chairman Chuck Grassley, last month called on the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General to explore the FBI and DOJ’s handling of the salacious…Chuck Ross -
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Justice Department Task Force to Crack Down on Election Interference
The Department of Justice announced Tuesday the creation of a cyber task force, including the FBI, that will counter efforts to interfere with U.S. elections. Attorney General Jeff Sessions signed a memorandum Friday, less than one week after special counsel Robert Mueller indicted 13 Russians for interfering with the the 2016 presidential election. Sessions warned of the dangers…Henry Rodgers -
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Justice Department Official Hid Wife’s Payments by Anti-Trump Researcher
Bruce Ohr, the Department of Justice official who brought opposition research on Donald Trump to the FBI in 2016, did not disclose that the company that produced it at the Democratic National Committee’s behest was paying his wife, documents obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation show. Ohr also did not obtain a conflict of…Luke Rosiak -
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California Sues DOJ Over Funding Cuts to ‘Sanctuary States’
The state of California sued the Department of Justice Wednesday to force the release of records relating to Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ order to withhold funding from so-called sanctuary states. California is one of several sanctuary jurisdictions—but the first state—to file a lawsuit relating to Sessions’ order to tie federal grants to immigration compliance. The lawsuit demands…Anders Hagstrom -
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Declassified Memo Shows DOJ Worked to ‘Tip the Scales of Justice,’ Lawmaker Says
A classified memo on potential FBI abuse of government surveillance was released Friday, and some lawmakers say it suggests government corruption. “At what point are we going to have real accountability in the Department of Justice and the FBI,” Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., said in a conference call with reporters Friday, adding: Obviously we have…Rachel del Guidice