Tag: doj

Voting Rights Groups Sue To Stop DOJ From Collecting State Voter Lists

Voting rights groups filed a lawsuit on April 21 seeking to block the Department of Justice (DOJ) from collecting, compiling, and analyzing state voter registration lists.

As of April 1, the DOJ has sued 30 states, including Washington, for failing to turn over voter rolls. The department has said the U.S. attorney general has congressional authority under the Civil Rights Act of 1960 to seek election records from states to check for improper voter registrations.

The groups filed a complaint on April 21, accusing the DOJ of seeking to use the sensitive data to build what they described as a “sprawling new voter surveillance and purging apparatus” without congressional authorization.

The complaint alleges that the department attempted to usurp states’ authority to oversee election administration and impose its own “secretive ’verification procedures’” to identify ineligible voters.

“Never before has a federal agency centralized this volume of Americans’ voting data in a single system of records,” it stated.

“And in doing so, DOJ has flouted statutory safeguards designed to ensure transparency and public participation in the federal government’s collection of Americans’ personal information.”

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by advocacy group Common Cause and four individual members of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

The data requested by the DOJ includes voters’ Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, dates of birth, home addresses, political party affiliations, and voter participation history, according to the filing.

The groups are seeking a court order requiring the DOJ to delete any voter rolls it has obtained from states and to bar the department from compiling or disclosing voter data.

Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, said on April 1 that the department has a duty to ensure state compliance with election laws.

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DOJ Must Release ALL Epstein Files or Face Criminal Liability, Rep. Massie Warns

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche must release every single page of the Epstein files or become “criminally liable for failure to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act,” U.S. Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY), who sponsored the law, said in an exclusive interview with Alex Newman for The New American’s Behind The Deep State.

The clock is now ticking. Former AG Pam Bondi clearly failed in her duty. Now it is Blanche’s turn, though he has so far resisted further disclosures as well.

If Americans do not obtain the files and the justice system continues to fail in holding the criminals accountable, the Deep State and the “Epstein class” of billionaires and swamp dwellers win again, continued Rep. Massie.

Massie, perhaps the leading champion for transparency and accountability regarding the Epstein scandal in Congress, vowed to keep fighting to see that his legislation signed into law by Trump is honored.

Known as the Epstein Files Transparency Act, it demands the full release of all files relating to Epstein’s criminal cabal, with redactions permitted only to protect victims. Enormous amounts of files are still being hidden by DOJ, he said.

Despite enormous pressure from Republicans and Democrats of the “uniparty” to dismiss the scandal as a “hoax” and just move on, Massie is doubling down.

“Until we get justice for the victims, I will not go away, and this issue will not go away,” he explained. “If I lose my reelection over this, it was worth it.”

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Harmeet Dhillon on DOJ Suing Multiple States and DC Over Access to Voter Rolls: “We Have Found at Least 350,000 Dead People Currently On the Voter Rolls” 

US Assistant AG for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon was on “Sunday Morning Futures” with host Maria Bartiromo to discuss the DOJ suing 29 states and DC over access to voter rolls.

Bartiromo and Dhillon also discussed the Russia Collusion Hoax and why it appears that no one is ever held accountable for it.

“Our audience knows exactly what happened with the Russia Collusion story. No one has been held accountable. Why not?” Bartiromo asked.

“I heard Kash’s remarks. I agree with them. And you know, your folks need to understand that when we start these investigations, it takes time. We have to interview a lot of witnesses. We don’t want to do what the other side did, which is just jump to conclusions. And so we are building strong cases,” Dhillon said.

“Some of the judges out there, particularly judges appointed more recently, have been, you know, doing their own form of lawfare by simply denying the Trump administration’s valid cases in court,” Dhillon continued.

“I can assure you that you know, the whole Department of Justice is very committed to this, and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is continuing the work started under the Attorney General Pam Bondi,” Dhillon explained.

“If the Republicans lose seats in the House, will these investigations get derailed?” Bartiromo asked.

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DOJ Refuses Cooperation, Warns France to Back Off Censorship Probe Targeting X Platform

The U.S. Justice Department has flatly refused to help French authorities investigate Elon Musk’s social media platform X.

In a letter sent Friday obtained by The Wall Street Journal , the DOJ’s Office of International Affairs said the French probe is an attempt to regulate a U.S. company through criminal law.

“This investigation seeks to use the criminal legal system in France to regulate a public square for the free expression of ideas and opinions in a manner contrary to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution,” the letter states.

The department added that France’s requests “constitute an effort to entangle the United States in a politically charged criminal proceeding aimed at wrongfully regulating through prosecution the business activities of a social media platform.”

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Joe DiGenova to Oversee Spygate Probe After DOJ Removes ‘Career’ Miami Prosecutor For Slow-Walking Charges Against John Brennan

Joe DiGenova, a former US Attorney under Reagan, will oversee the Spygate probe in Florida after the DOJ removed a Deep State prosecutor who was stonewalling and slow-walking charges against John Brennan.

The Justice Department on Friday removed Maria Medetis, a career federal prosecutor who was slow-walking charges against John Brennan.

Former CIA Director John Brennan is the “target” of the grand jury Russiagate probe in South Florida.

Last July, it was reported that former FBI Director James Comey and John Brennan were under FBI investigation over their involvement in Russiagate.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe referred Brennan and Comey for prosecution over the summer.

US Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones in the Southern District of Florida is in charge of the investigation.

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DOJ says Mamdani would be sued if he tries requiring white neighborhoods to pay higher property tax

he U.S. Justice Department said it would sue New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani if he tries requiring white neighborhoods to pay higher property taxes.

Harmeet Dhillon, U.S. assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, was responding to a socal media post about a New York Post front page from the NYC mayoral campaign.

“This is illegal. If it happens, expect a lawsuit. Or many,” she wrote.

Earlier this month, Mamdani released details of his current tax plan, which includes requiring luxury second homes to pay higher property taxes.

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Pro-Life Father Targeted By Biden’s FBI Wins $1M Settlement

During the Biden administration, pro-lifers were routinely targeted by the Department of Justice.

In 2022, under the leadership of then Attorney General Merrick Garland, father of seven and pro-life warrior Mark Houck was arrested in Pennsylvania as dozens of fully-armed FBI agents raided his home and terrified his family.

The arrest stemmed from an incident outside an abortion clinic in 2021.

A 72-year-old abortion escort allegedly insisted on harassing Houck’s 12 -year old son, who was accompanying him during sidewalk counseling in front of the clinic. After weeks of agitation, Houck ultimately shoved the abortion escort. No injuries were reported.

Although local prosecutors declined to pursue the case and a judge dismissed a civil lawsuit filed by the escort, Federal authorities charged Houck with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.

Houck was found not guilty.

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Federal Reserve Stonewalls DOJ Prosecutors Investigating Headquarters Construction: Report

Federal prosecutors made a surprise visit Tuesday to the construction site of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters renovation project.

Workers at the site refused to admit them, saying they did not have clearance in advance of the visit, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The $2.5 billion project has been under review by the administration, and the prosecutors came from the office of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.

“Any construction project that has cost overruns of almost 80 percent over the original construction budget deserves some serious review,” Pirro said in a statement.

“And these people are in charge of monetary policy in the United States?” she asked.

Robert Hur, an attorney representing the Fed, said prosecutors Carlton Davis and Steven Vandervelden appeared “without prior notice” and sought a tour to check the work’s progress.

President Donald Trump has praised Pirro “for having the courage” to investigate the Fed.

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ODNI sends criminal referrals to DOJ for ex-IG, whistleblower tied to Trump impeachment

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence sent criminal referrals to the Justice Department for the whistleblower whose complaint helped trigger President Donald Trump’s 2019 impeachment and for the former intelligence community inspector general who notified Congress of the allegations, Fox News Digital has learned.

“I want to refer information that may constitute possible criminal activity in violation of federal criminal law committed by one or more former employees of the intelligence community,” ODNI’s general counsel wrote in the referral to the Justice Department.

Fox News Digital on Wednesday reviewed the referrals ODNI sent to the Justice Department. 

“The possible criminal activity concerns the circumstances described in the following congressional briefings:Discussion with Intelligence Community Inspector General, House Permanent Select Comm. on Intel., 116th Cong. (2019); Briefing by the Intelligence Community Inspector General, House Permanent Select Comm. on Intel., 116th Cong. (2019),” it continued.  

The referrals come after DNI Tulsi Gabbard released documents earlier this week exposing what was described as a “coordinated effort” by elements within the intelligence community—including then-Inspector General Michael Atkinson, to “manufacture a conspiracy” that was used as the basis to impeach Trump in 2019.

An intelligence official told Fox News Digital that the language in the referral is broad, but that it’s specifically directed at Atkinson and the whistleblower who reported concerns about President Trump’s July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

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DOJ fires at least 4 prosecutors involved in FACE Act cases during Biden administration

The Justice Department has fired at least four prosecutors who were involved in prosecutions under the FACE Act during the Biden administration, a government official familiar with the firings told CBS News.

Among those fired Monday is Sanjay Patel, a longtime federal prosecutor in the Civil Rights Division’s criminal section who was placed on administrative leave last month, sources told CBS News at the time. The terminations occurred at about the same time a report on the FACE Act and the Biden Justice Department was being finalized. 

Congress passed the FACE Act in 1994 to address rising concerns about threats and intimidation that women were facing at reproductive health clinics. Nonviolent and first-time offenses of the law are misdemeanors, while repeat offenses or violations that result in bodily injury or death can be treated as felonies.

The FACE Act report is being drafted by the Justice Department’s “weaponization working group,” established in the first days of former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s tenure. 

Tuesday’s firings mark the latest in a purge that started last year of Justice Department employees, many of whom worked on criminal or civil cases opposed by the Trump administration or President Trump’s allies.

A Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement that the department “has terminated the employment of personnel responsible for weaponizing the FACE Act who still remained at the department.”

Stacey Young, a former Civil Rights Division lawyer who founded and leads the nonprofit Justice Connection, said in a statement, “Congress passed the FACE Act with bipartisan support more than 30 years ago, and courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of its provisions that ensure safe access to reproductive health services.”

She added, “Firing DOJ attorneys for zealously enforcing the law is unconscionable — it politicizes the department’s enforcement actions and punishes dedicated civil servants for doing their jobs.”

The Trump administration has repeatedly alleged without citing evidence that the Civil Rights Division under former Attorney General Merrick Garland used the Act to intentionally target conservative Christians who are morally opposed to abortion.

Although the Justice Department also pursued criminal charges against abortion rights activists who were accused of trying to scare volunteers and workers at a crisis pregnancy clinic that counseled on alternatives to abortion, excerpts of a draft the report reviewed by CBS News said the total number of such cases were minimal compared to those targeting conservative anti-abortion Christians.

Early in his second term, Mr. Trump pardoned many of the FACE Act defendants convicted during the Biden administration. The Justice Department also dismissed several other FACE Act cases and ordered prosecutors to put the brakes on future FACE Act investigations.

At the same time, however, the current Justice Department has allowed the remaining FACE Act cases involving abortion rights activists to proceed without interference, with one Florida-based defendant receiving a 120-day prison term in March 2025.

Many of the other former federal prosecutors who handled FACE Act cases have since left the Justice Department.

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