(16 Apr 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
POOL
Washington – 16 April 2024
1. Wide of House Appropriations hearing
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Merrick Garland, Attorney General:
“We will use these resources to continue our fight against gun violence, to prosecute illegal gun traffickers and straw purchasers, and to advance- invest in advanced technological tools like ballistics analysis, firearms crossing guard, intelligence centers, and local fusion cells.”
3. Cutaway of lawmakers
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Merrick Garland, Attorney General:
“The right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy. Protecting that right also requires us to protect the citizens who rely, who we rely on to fairly administer voting. Our democracy cannot function if officials, workers, and volunteers who administer our elections have to fear for their lives just for doing their jobs.”
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Merrick Garland, Attorney General:
REP. BEN CLINE (R – Virginia): ”Have you ever seen evidence of impairment in your meetings with the president?”
GARLAND: ”I’m sorry. I testified, and I’ll repeat again what I just said."
REP. CLINE (Off-Camera): “Well, that’s different than my question.”
GARLAND: “Well, I have seen the president effectively guide the members of the department of his cabinet, and his military through it."
REP. CLINE (Off-Camera): “But you won’t say you’ve ever seen any impairment on his part?”
GARLAND: “The president has no impairment.”
REP CLINE: ”You’ve never seen any.”
GARLAND: "I don’t know how many ways I can say this. I have complete confidence in the president, and I reject your characterization."
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Joe Morelle, (D) New York:
“I’m certainly not asking you to comment on the substance of the report, which has been talked about publicly, but as a member of the president’s cabinet, someone who has regular contact with the president. Would you like to comment on President Biden’s of fitness, generally?”
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Merrick Garland, Attorney General:
“Look, I’m, start by thanking you for recognizing that I can’t comment and won’t comment about special counsel’s report at all. But if you’re asking me about my own observations as a member of the National Security Council and a member of the president’s cabinet, I have complete confidence in the president. I have watched him expertly guide, meetings of staff and cabinet members on issues of foreign affairs and, military strategy and policy in the in the incredibly complex world in which we, now face, and in which he has been deciphered, decisive, in instructions, to the staff and decisive in making the decisions necessary to protect the country. Likewise, with respect to domestic policy discussions, these are intricate, complicated questions that he has guided all of us through in order to reach results that are helpful and important and beneficial to the American people. I could not have more confidence in the president.”
8. Cutaway of Garland sitting in front of House panel
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Merrick Garland, Attorney General:
“So, as you know, Congressman, the Justice department doesn’t normally comment on whether investigations exist or not, but plenty of people saw FBI agents on board the ship. So the FBI has confirmed that its agents were on the ship. I can’t really say anything more.”
++EDIT ENDS ON SOUNDBITE++
STORYLINE:
Attorney General Merrick Garland shot back at lawmakers on Tuesday saying he believes President Biden has “no impairment,” referring to special counsel Robert Hur’s report.
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