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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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 -
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The Brand Memorandum: The Justice Department Reaffirms Its Commitment to the Rule of Law
It is common for agencies to issue a variety of document—generically termed “guidance documents”—to inform the public how the agency interprets the law. That is all well and good. There are a bazillion statutes and regulations–to steal a phrase, “they outnumber the grains of sand on the beach.” Anything that agencies can do to help…Paul J. Larkin -
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DOJ Backs Effort to Repeal California Law Requiring Pro-Lifers to Promote Abortion
The Department of Justice filed an amicus (or “friend-of-the-court”) brief at the Supreme Court, urging the justices to overturn a California law requiring pro-life crisis pregnancy centers to post information about state-funded abortions. The Supreme Court has agreed to review the law in November. The law, called the Reproductive FACT Act, requires crisis pregnancy clinics to post…Kevin Daley -
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Justice Department Requests ‘Unredacted’ Findings of Senate Investigation That Included Planned Parenthood
The Department of Justice is requesting unredacted copies of a 2016 report conducted by the Senate Judiciary Committee on those involved in fetal tissue and body parts sales and transfer. “At this point, the records are intended for investigative use only—we understand that a resolution from the Senate may be required if the department were…Rachel del Guidice -
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7 Questions the Justice Department Must Answer About Uranium One and Clinton Foundation
While the media’s attention has shifted to the indictment of Paul Manafort, the Obama administration’s handling of the Uranium One “bribery plot” (as The Hill called it in a startling expose) raises serious, critical questions that must be answered about the Justice Department’s handling of the investigation. These questions can only be answered if Congress…Hans von Spakovsky -
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Senate Eyes Permanent Ban on Justice Department ‘Slush Fund’ for Political Friends
Legislation to codify the U.S. attorney general’s recent ban on diverting millions in legal settlements to outside groups is now in the Senate’s court, following last week’s House action. The Justice Department practice, widely criticized as a $1 billion “slush fund” benefiting liberal advocacy groups in the last 30 months of the Obama administration alone,…Kevin Mooney -
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Sessions Highlights 2 Most Vital Liberties Justice Department Will Aim to Protect
Attorney General Jeff Sessions spoke about the accomplishments of the Justice Department and its new direction in a speech at The Heritage Foundation on Thursday. Sessions discussed the long tradition of the rule of law in America and how it has been so critical to our success as a nation. He called this tradition “unique…Jarrett Stepman -
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Justice Department Frees Up Uranium One Informant to Congress
The Department of Justice released a former FBI informant from a confidentiality agreement, allowing him to testify before Congress about what he saw while undercover during a former President Barack Obama-era deal where a Russian-backed company bought a uranium firm with mines in the U.S. Congressional committees have previously tried to interview the informant, whose…Henry Rodgers -
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Obama Justice Department’s $1 Billion ‘Slush Fund’ Boosted Liberal Groups
President Barack Obama’s Justice Department created a “slush fund” of nearly $1 billion using legal settlements with banks and steered those funds to political allies on the left while excluding conservative groups, internal documents show. Tony West, an associate attorney general during the Obama administration who is now a top official at PepsiCo Inc., figures…Kevin Mooney -
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House Panels to Reopen Investigations Into Justice Department’s 2016 Decisions
Lawmakers are reopening an investigation into decisions made by the Justice Department in 2016, including those relating to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information. “Decisions made by the Department of Justice in 2016 have led to a host of outstanding questions that must be answered,” Reps. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., the chairman…Rachel del Guidice -
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In Positive Turn, Justice Department Prosecuting Wrongdoers Rather Than Cutting Deals to Win Fines
Federal prosecutors have accused a group of U.S. postal workers servicing the Atlanta area of taking bribes in exchange for delivering shipments of illegal drugs. U.S. Attorney John Horn said, “For cash in their pockets they were willing to endanger themselves and the residents on their routes and bring harmful drugs into the community.” Contrast…John-Michael Seibler