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Democratic President-elect Joe Biden has declined his party’s calls to push the Justice Department to investigate President Donald Trump, saying he will not use the DOJ like his Republican opponent has done in the past.
Reports released this month indicated Biden’s reluctance to continue investigating Trump during his next presidency, lest it will divide the country. But New Jersey congressman Bill Pascrell disagreed. In a series of tweets shared earlier this month, lawmakers called for an investigation of the entire Trump administration after Biden’s inauguration.
Biden said Tuesday night he would not push the DOJ to continue investigating Trump after he left.
“I will not do what this president is doing and use the Justice Department as my vehicle to insist that something happen,” the Democrat said. “There are a number of surveys that I have read about that are at the state level. I cannot or cannot do anything about it at all.”
Mark Makela / Getty
On November 17, Pascrell demanded that Trump and his entourage stand trial for their crimes against our nation and our Constitution and insisted the president had engaged in “betrayal.” When he steps down, Trump will lose his immunity from federal criminal charges guaranteed to sitting presidents in accordance with DOJ policy.
“In 2021, the entire Trump regime must be fully investigated by the Department of Justice and other relevant offices,” Pascrell tweeted. “Any other abuse of forgiveness would in itself be an obstruction of justice and any illegal self-forgiveness.”
Pascrell accused Trump and his administration of committing “countless crimes” including endangering national security, tearing families apart, taking advantage of office and attempting “to strangle democracy.”
“He is engaged in treason, in betrayal. If he had an ounce of dignity, he would resign today,” added the lawmaker. “Failure to hold financial and political wrongdoing accountable has resulted in greater malfeasance on the part of bad actors. A repeat of these failures in 2021 further emboldens the crimes of our leaders and continues America on the path of anarchy and authoritarianism. There must be responsibilities.
Democrats had previously accused Trump of using the role of president for personal gain, but Pascrell’s comments marked one of the strongest in the party in favor of a Democrats-led probe into the Republican administration under a Biden presidency.
During the Democratic presidential primaries, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris said her DOJ would likely pursue obstruction of justice charges against Trump if elected. Since polling day, Harris has echoed Biden’s opinion that department officials should make the decision “without any interference from the White House.”
Newsweek has contacted the White House for comment.
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