House Republicans are skeptical that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will act on their newly passed criminal referral against Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Multiple GOP lawmakers argued it would be hypocritical of the DOJ not to act, given the recent prosecutions and guilty verdicts for former Trump administration aides Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon following similar referrals.

‘I don’t have much hope that this administration is going to follow the letter of the law or the intent of Congress or the subpoenas for the president,’ Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., told Fox News Digital.

‘It’s just a further manifestation of the weaponization of the DOJ. So they’re not playing umpire, they’re not behaving as the executive…they’re not calling balls and strikes. They’re just frankly doing things for what look like political purposes, which is not their job,’ he said.

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., said when asked if he anticipated the DOJ following through on the House’s will, ‘Garland’s gonna take up his own contempt resolution? Not likely.’

‘There’s nothing but hypocrisy, especially considering the fact that President Trump cited executive privilege for Steve Bannon, and Merrick Garland had moved forward anyway,’ Donalds said.

GOP lawmakers aimed to hold Garland in contempt over his refusal to turn over audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with President Biden.

Hur’s findings cleared Biden of wrongdoing in his handling of classified documents, but also said the 81-year-old president presented himself ‘as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,’ and that ‘it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him — by then a former president well into his eighties — of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.’

Biden and his allies aggressively pushed back on concerns about his mental fitness in the report’s wake.

Republicans seeking the audio recording argued it would provide critical context about Biden’s state of mind. Democrats, meanwhile, have dismissed the request as a partisan attempt to politicize the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The DOJ followed through on two of three criminal referrals sent to them by the previous Democrat-controlled Congress but did not act on a third criminal contempt resolution aimed at former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Meadows, Bannon and Navarro were all targeted for dodging subpoenas from the now-defunct House select committee investigating Jan. 6.

‘I’m not optimistic because I think the DOJ has proven themselves very partisan and not honest brokers of how they apply the law,’ Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., said of the Garland resolution.

‘I think there’s ample evidence that he is in contempt, and I hope that they’ll not be hypocritical. I mean, it’d be a sad day for America,’ he said.

Garland took an indirect shot at Republicans’ pushback on the DOJ in a Washington Post op-ed on Tuesday morning.

‘In recent weeks, we have seen an escalation of attacks that go far beyond public scrutiny, criticism, and legitimate and necessary oversight of our work. They are baseless, personal and dangerous,’ he wrote. ‘These attacks come in the form of threats to defund particular department investigations, most recently the special counsel’s prosecution of the former president.’

The House voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress on Wednesday, referring the top Department of Justice (DOJ) official for criminal charges.

The measure passed nearly along party lines in a 216 to 207 vote, with just one Republican, Rep. David Joyce, R-Ohio, voting against it.

Joyce said in a statement after the vote, ‘As a former prosecutor, I cannot in good conscience support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points. The American people expect Congress to work for them, solve policy problems, and prioritize good governance. Enough is enough.’

GOP lawmakers aimed to hold Garland in contempt over his refusal to turn over audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with President Biden.

Hur concluded that no criminal charges were warranted in Biden’s handling of classified documents, but also said the 81-year-old president presented himself ‘as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,’ and that ‘it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him — by then a former president well into his eighties — of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.’

Biden and his allies aggressively pushed back on concerns about his mental fitness in the report’s wake.

The Justice Department released a statement from Attorney General Garland after the vote.

‘It is deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon. Today’s vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Department’s need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees,’ he said.

‘I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.’

Republicans seeking the audio recording argued it would provide critical context about Biden’s state of mind. Democrats, meanwhile, have dismissed the request as a partisan attempt to politicize the Department of Justice.

‘It’s a huge disappointment. I think it’s an abuse of the congressional contempt power,’ Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., told Fox News Digital of the GOP effort.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, however, argued that the DOJ’s refusal meant Garland simply wanted it hidden.

‘There’s only one reason why the attorney general would do that. He doesn’t want us to hear it. That’s why,’ Roy said on the House floor Wednesday. ‘And there’s really only two reasons why that would be the case — either the transcript doesn’t match the audio, or the audio is so bad that he doesn’t want us to hear it.’

The pursuit of Hur’s audio tapes is part of the House GOP’s wider impeachment inquiry into President Biden, investigating allegations he used his political position to enrich himself and his family. Biden has denied accusations of wrongdoing.

House Republicans halted advancement of a contempt resolution against Hunter Biden, the president’s son, earlier this year after GOP investigators reached an agreement with his attorneys.

Meanwhile, two ex-Trump administration aides — former Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro and former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon — were convicted on contempt of Congress charges for dodging subpoenas by the House select committee on Jan. 6.

Both were referred for criminal charges by the previous Democrat-controlled House of Representatives. The DOJ did not act on a third referral by Democrats for former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.

It’s highly unlikely the DOJ will act on House Republicans’ Garland referral, something that frustrated House Republicans who spoke with Fox News Digital on Wednesday.

‘I’m not optimistic, because I think the DOJ has proven themselves very partisan and not honest brokers of how they apply the law,’ said Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga.

When asked if he thought the DOJ might act, Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., quipped, ‘Not likely.’

Garland took an indirect shot at Republicans’ pushback on the DOJ in a Washington Post op-ed on Tuesday morning.

‘In recent weeks, we have seen an escalation of attacks that go far beyond public scrutiny, criticism, and legitimate and necessary oversight of our work. They are baseless, personal and dangerous,’ he wrote. ‘These attacks come in the form of threats to defund particular department investigations, most recently the special counsel’s prosecution of the former president.’

If there was any remaining doubt about former President Trump’s sway over the Republican Party, dismiss it.

The presumptive GOP presidential nominee firmly remains his party’s ultimate kingmaker — candidates who landed the coveted Trump endorsement all won their primary battles on Tuesday as four states held intra-party contests.

And in a couple of high-profile cases, Republican primaries that were supposed to be competitive contests ended up as blowouts with the Trump-backed candidates easily cruising to victory.

‘With all things equal, you want the president’s endorsement. End of story,’ longtime Republican consultant Dave Carney told Fox News. ‘It’s not a guaranteed win, but it is really important. It sends a signal to primary voters of your credentials.’

And seasoned GOP strategist and communicator Lance Trover, spotlighting that the party remains firmly under Trump’s grip, said, ‘I don’t know that there’s really any question about where Republican voters are and who they’re aligned with.’

A last-minute endorsement by Trump in Nevada likely boosted Army veteran Sam Brown to a more than 40-point victory in the GOP Senate primary in the key race in a crucial Western battleground that may determine whether Republicans win back the chamber’s majority.

Brown, a former Army captain who was severely burned and permanently scarred in 2008 when his vehicle ran over an explosive device in the war in Afghanistan, ended up crushing his main Republican rival — Jeff Gunter, a wealthy dermatologist who served as Trump’s ambassador to Iceland.

Trump’s endorsement Sunday in Nevada was the latest example of the former president backing the candidate supported by the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which is the Senate GOP’s campaign arm.

In South Carolina, Republican Rep. Nancy Mace survived a serious primary challenge for a second straight election cycle. 

Mace won renomination in South Carolina’s competitive Low Country-based 1st Congressional District by easily defeating Catherine Templeton, a former director of South Carolina’s labor agency who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2018, and Marine Corps veteran Bill Young.

Templeton was backed by millions spent by outside groups aligned with former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Unlike two years ago, when he had her back, the former House speaker targeted Mace, who last year was one of eight House Republicans to break ranks and vote to oust McCarthy. 

The former speaker is seeking revenge as he works to defeat the eight Republican lawmakers, and McCarthy-aligned outside groups shelled out millions of dollars to run ads supporting Templeton and targeting Mace.

In 2022, Trump targeted Mace after she blamed him for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters aiming to upend congressional certification of President Biden’s 2020 election victory. Mace won a single-digit victory over a Trump-backed challenger.

But fast-forward two years, and Mace now had Trump’s backing after she endorsed the former president and campaigned for him earlier this year in South Carolina’s crucial GOP presidential primary.

Trump also had an impact on the GOP primary race in the 4th District in upstate South Carolina. That’s where three-term Rep. William Timmons narrowly fended off a challenge from state Rep. Adam Morgan, who ran to Timmons’ right.

‘There’s no doubt that Timmons would have lost without the Trump endorsement,’ a Republican source who works on House races told Fox News.

In Maine’s 2nd Congressional District — where Republicans are once again hoping to knock off moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, who is running for a fourth term in a mostly rural district won by Trump in both 2016 and 2020 — the former president’s endorsement made a major impact.

State Rep. Austin Theriault, a former NASCAR driver who had Trump’s backing, defeated state Rep. Mike Soboleski by more than 30 points.

And in North Dakota, Trump’s endorsement of Rep. Kelly Armstrong likely helped the three-term Republican representative top Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller in the race to succeed GOP Gov. Doug Burgum.

Burgum, who is considered a top contender to serve as Trump’s running mate, had backed Miller in the primary.

Carney, who stayed neutral in the GOP presidential primaries but is now steering a pro-Trump super PAC, noted that compared to two years ago, when a number of high-profile Trump endorsed candidates won primary battles but went down to defeat in the general election, ‘he’s being more judicious in who he’s endorsing.’

And Trover, a top aide on Burgum’s unsuccessful 2024 presidential primary campaign, emphasized, ‘I think you’re seeing more and more of a unified Republican Party as we inch forward toward the general election.’

He argued that the GOP is ‘a unified party that’s going to be with him 110% of the way, no matter what happens.’

Republicans did under perform in Tuesday’s one general election showdown — a special congressional election in red-state Ohio.

Republican state Sen. Michael Rulli defeated Democrat Michael Kripchak, an Air Force veteran, by less than 10 points in the race to succeed former GOP Rep. Bill Johnson, who stepped down earlier this year to serve as president of Youngstown State University.

Johnson overwhelmingly won the mostly rural and blue-collar district by 35 points in his 2022 re-election and Trump carried the district by 29 points in 2020.

But the massive swing in the Democrats’ favor is the latest example of their party overperforming in special elections.

National Republican Congressional Committee communications director Jack Pandol argued that his party is ‘not sweating’ the results in the special election and dismisses talk that the contest was a barometer for things to come in November, as the House GOP works to defend its razor-thin majority in the chamber.

‘It’s a special election It’s off-calendar. Turnout is really low,’ Pandol told Fox News. ‘I don’t think that it’s useful or instructive to try to read into this too much.’

And he predicted that House Republicans ‘will eviscerate’ Democrats with ‘presidential-level turnout.’

The House of Representatives is voting on whether to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress over his failure to produce audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with President Biden.

Hur’s findings cleared Biden of wrongdoing in his handling of classified documents but also said the 81-year-old president presented himself ‘as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory’ and ‘it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him-by then a former president well into his eighties-of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.’

Biden and his allies aggressively pushed back on concerns about his mental fitness in the report’s wake.

Republicans seeking the audio recording argue it would provide critical context about Biden’s state of mind. Democrats, meanwhile, have dismissed the request as a partisan attempt to politicize the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The pursuit of Hur’s audio tapes is part of the House GOP’s wider impeachment inquiry into Biden, investigating allegations he used his political position to enrich himself and his family. Biden has denied accusations of wrongdoing.

And while the majority of Republicans have indicated they support the measure, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has little wiggle room: He can only lose two votes on any party-line measure.

Two Republicans – Reps. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., and Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., told Fox News Digital they are still unsure about how they’ll vote.

‘I still have to go through the final decision process. But if they’ve already released the transcripts, it doesn’t seem to me like there’s any legal leg to stand on to not release the actual videos. To me, that seems like something they should do,’ Newhouse said.

Ciscomani said, ‘I want to understand exactly the purpose behind that before I comment on it.’

House Freedom Caucus member Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., criticized the moderates’ indecision.

‘If moderates don’t agree that Merrick Garland needs to be censured by not turning over audio which solidifies whatever the testimony is, that would shock me,’ Norman said.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said she would aim to force a vote on her own inherent contempt resolution against Garland if the DOJ fails to go after him if the Wednesday resolution passes. An inherent contempt resolution would direct the House’s sergeant at arms to arrest its target rather than passing it to the DOJ.

‘As of right now, we fully intend to bring it,’ Luna said. ‘I don’t really have much faith in the Department of Justice. And I don’t think the American people do either. But we are trying to bring back a level playing field and show that, you know, there should be accountability all the way up to the top.’

Democrats, meanwhile, blasted the GOP effort. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., said, ‘This is what they want to do because they don’t have the votes to impeach Joe Biden, right? That’s why they did Merrick Garland. That’s why they went after [Hunter Biden]. It’s all trying to please their base because Congress doesn’t want to do what Donald Trump wants, which is to impeach Joe Biden so they can have even scores.’

Their targeting of Garland is part of a wider GOP effort to crack down on alleged weaponization of the DOJ by Biden’s officials. That also includes various pieces of legislation and public threats to defund various aspects of the department, including the special counsel currently investigating former President Trump.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ for comment on the contempt resolution against Garland.

Garland took an indirect shot at Republicans’ pushback on the DOJ in a Washington Post op-ed on Tuesday morning.

‘In recent weeks, we have seen an escalation of attacks that go far beyond public scrutiny, criticism, and legitimate and necessary oversight of our work. They are baseless, personal and dangerous,’ he wrote. ‘These attacks come in the form of threats to defund particular department investigations, most recently the special counsel’s prosecution of the former president.’

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is vowing to force a vote on Attorney General Merrick Garland’s arrest if the Department of Justice (DOJ) fails to act on a criminal contempt resolution backed by House GOP leaders.

Luna told Fox News Digital on Tuesday evening that she would plan to force a vote on her ‘inherent contempt’ resolution against Garland after the full House of Representatives weighs the Biden official’s fate with a separate measure.

‘As of right now, we fully intend to bring it,’ Luna revealed. ‘I don’t really have much faith in the Department of Justice. And I don’t think the American people do either. But we are trying to bring back a level playing field and show that, you know, there should be accountability all the way up to the top.’

She added, ‘If the DOJ won’t do their jobs, we’re going to do it for them.’

Inherent contempt differs from the contempt resolution expected to come up for a vote Wednesday afternoon. Whereas the latter would refer Garland to his own department for criminal charges, inherent contempt, if passed, would direct the House sergeant at arms to arrest Garland himself.

Luna said she would be circulating a letter among her colleagues on Wednesday explaining inherent contempt and the need for it.

‘Inherent contempt of Congress hasn’t been done since early 1900s. And before that, it was a pretty common practice,’ Luna said. 

‘I think that when you explain to people what inherent contempt of Congress is and when they see that subpoenas are being ignored, and that there seems to be a two-tiered justice system — which we’re seeing nationally, every single person…is realizing that — I think that they will understand.’

Luna could force House leaders to take up her bill by deeming it ‘privileged,’ which would mandate the House to act on it within two legislative days.

When asked what she would do if the Wednesday vote was called off or delayed due to concerns from moderate Republicans, Luna said she would defer to the leadership’s schedule.

.

‘I’m gonna wait for the vote to happen the way that leadership wants it to happen with the criminal contempt. And then after that, that’ll start the clock on our stuff,’ she said.

House Republicans are aiming to hold Garland in contempt for refusing to turn over audio recordings of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interviews with President Biden. 

While a majority of Republicans support the move, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has precious little wiggle room with just a two-vote majority.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ for comment.

: President Biden is being pressured to revoke media credentials from Al Jazeera and cut off its access to the White House following revelations that one of its affiliated journalists reportedly held an Israeli hostage in their family’s Gaza home. 

‘It is no secret that Qatar-funded Al Jazeera has long been a mouthpiece for terrorists and has peddled anti-American sentiments,’ Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., wrote in a letter to Biden sent on Tuesday evening. ‘As such, I urge you to immediately revoke Al Jazeera’s access to the White House until it cuts all ties with U.S.-designated [Foreign Terrorist Organizations].’

Al Jazeera Media Network is a global media enterprise with numerous channels and publications in various languages. It originated in Qatar in 1996. It is still based in Qatar and notes on its website that it is ‘funded in part by the Qatari government.’ The network also has dozens of bureaus in countries around the world.

‘The list of Al Jazeera ‘journalists’ in Gaza who are supporting terrorism is only growing,’ Rubio claimed. 

‘According to reports, three of the hostages rescued by Israeli Defense Forces after 246 days in captivity in Gaza, were held captive by Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist, Abdallah Aljamal, and his extended family,’ the Republican highlighted. 

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) alleged earlier this week that Aljamal, who was killed during the successful hostage rescue mission, ‘was a Hamas terrorist holding Almog, Andrey and Shlomi hostage in his family’s home in Nuseirat.’ The IDF provided a screenshot of Aljamal’s author page on Al Jazeera. 

Earlier this month, Israel conducted the largest hostage recovery operation since the onset of the war with Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, rescuing four Israeli hostages. Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Shlomi Ziv, 41, and Andrey Kozlov, 27, were recovered by the IDF in central Gaza after being held for 246 days. 

Al Jazeera pushed back against the connection to Aljamal, claiming he ‘has never worked with the Network, but had contributed to an Op-ed in 2019.’ The network’s public relations X account added, ‘these allegations are completely unfounded.’

Rubio noted that despite the claim from Al Jazeera, ‘he is listed on the company’s English language website as ‘a Gaza-based reporter and photojournalist’ who ‘often reports from the ongoing ‘March of Return’ protests at the fence separating besieged Gaza from Israel.’’

Further, the Florida senator pointed out Aljamal was also a contributor to the Palestine Chronicle, which is ‘an English-language pro-Hamas outlet led by ex-Al Jazeera official Ramzi Baroud.’ Aljamal’s past stories with the outlet often refer to the war as a ‘genocide.’ 

As Rubio claimed, Baroud was once deputy managing editor of Al Jazeera online, per his LinkedIn profile. He now serves as editor of the Palestine Chronicle. 

‘A free press is built into the DNA of our nation,’ Rubio prefaced. ‘However, for years, Al Jazeera has used its platform to sow anti-American sentiments and harm our own security and those of our allies.’

‘So long as it employs journalists and reporters who operate as members and affiliates of FTOs, Al Jazeera will continue to undermine our nation from inside our government buildings,’ he claimed, adding, ‘There is absolutely no reason Al Jazeera, or its employees, should have access to you, the White House, or any of your advisors.’

He urged Biden to remove credentials from Kimberly Halkett, an Al Jazeera reporter covering the U.S., along with any other ’employees who have access to the White House.’

The White House did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication. 

Al Jazeera did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital when contacted. 

For the last three decades, I have been imploring Republican presidential candidates to take their message directly to America’s inner cities. Directly to the epicenters of ‘blueness.’

As someone who grew up in abject poverty in some of those inner cities, I knew that most of those residents strongly believe in the rule of law, are faith-based and do support the police. But, for the last number of decades, they have also felt disrespected and abandoned by the GOP and Republican presidential candidates.

Former President Trump not only just flipped the script on that perceived disrespect with his rally last month in the deep blue Bronx – which brought out approximately 25,000 people – but demonstrated that there are potentially hundreds of thousands of untapped New York City voters who do believe in the rule of law, who do support the police, and who will come out in large numbers if they are recognized and respected.

Not only was the rally historic, but the anti-conventional-wisdom Trump also exposed a hidden and often censored truth. The Democrats don’t have a lock on the votes in our inner cities or within the minority community.

All of which raises a critically important question: How many untapped votes are there in the deep blue cities of Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and elsewhere? Millions to be sure.   

In so many ways, minority and inner-city residents are the brightest and most aware of all voters. Because failing political policies often batter them every single day of their lives. They understand the harsh realities of life better than most. As such, they are open to solutions that might deliver them from such misery. More than that, they are desperate for such solutions. 

That said, it’s unfair to ask for their vote if you are not willing to present yourself to them and offer up your solutions to their many problems. Openness, respect and trust must be a two-way street.

To paraphrase the movie ‘Field of Dreams,’ if you offer up that in-person attendance and respect, ‘they will come.’ And potentially in historic numbers for a Republican candidate.

That exact same formula also applies to the ‘deep blue’ high-tech community. Over the last two decades, I have interacted with dozens of high-tech entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley and other perceived blue bastions of liberalism and wokeism.  

And within these strongholds of far-left elitism and loyalty to failed Democratic policies are thousands of high-tech employees – and, indeed, CEOs – who recognize that the failed policies of the far-left are destroying society about them and putting their very lives in danger. These men and women will rally around commonsense, pragmatic solutions that reinforce the rule of law.   

What Trump clearly understands is that presidential elections are ultimately won by shaving off one-half of 1% in a district; one-quarter of 1% in a county, and one-eighth of 1% in a state. As we saw in 2020, less than 60,000 votes can flip a presidential election.

It can certainly be argued that Trump has the most impressive road show in America. A road show that brings out huge crowds while creating massive word of mouth and new voters. A road show that will play in blue states, blue cities and blue ‘high-tech,’ as proved in New Jersey, the Bronx, and of late, California.

Last week, billionaire entrepreneur David Sacks co-hosted a fundraiser for Trump in his San Francisco home with Democrat mega-donor and former Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya. The goal was to raise $5 million. The sold-out event brought in $12 million. Why?

As Sacks pointed out to Laura Ingraham in part last week:

‘I know there’s a lot of people out there who are already Trump supporters, and they’re just afraid to stick their necks out. I mean, that’s the reality of the situation because they’re afraid of getting ostracized or afraid of cancel culture. They’re afraid of punishment, and they’re afraid because the Biden administration likes political prosecutions and political investigations… With each incremental person who sticks their neck out and endorses Trump, it makes the rest of them feel more comfortable doing it, and you’re seeing, I think, a cascade starting to happen now, where more and more people are going to come out for Trump.’

True. But a ‘cascade’ can only flow if the wall is penetrated or even toppled.    

Since 2015, Trump has proved himself to be the ‘counterintuitive candidate.’ He marches to the beat of his own drum and his instincts often prove unerringly correct.

Be it our inner cities, our bluest of states or high-tech America, Trump knows he has an almost completely blank canvas to paint upon. He must take advantage of it.  

He must take his road show to those cities, to those states, and to those entrepreneurs; show respect to those ignored by the GOP for decades; and offer up his commonsense, pragmatic solutions.

If Trump ‘builds it,’ they will come, they will listen, they will donate, and they will… vote.

Congressional Democrats criticized their Republican counterparts over alleged hypocrisy after they were not satisfied when President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, was found guilty of federal firearms charges on Tuesday. 

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., remarked that ‘my Republican friends have gone on and on about how Democrats have weaponized the [Department of Justice], but their conspiracy theories crumbled this morning when Hunter Biden, the son of the president, was found guilty in a federal court on three gun-related charges.’

‘The divide here is stunning. And it’s a great reminder that one political party remains committed to the rule of law and the other doesn’t. It’s that simple,’ McGovern added. 

When asked if the verdict undermines GOP claims that the justice system has two tiers, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., responded to Fox News, ‘How could you make the argument when this justice system has just handed down a verdict when it comes to the son of the President of the United States?’

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., pointed to the difference between the two political parties in the aftermath of former President Trump’s guilty verdict in New York and Biden’s guilty verdict in Delaware. 

‘Compare and contrast the difference in reaction between the Republicans or Democrats,’ he said. ‘The Republicans are attacking our entire system of justice and the rule of law if they don’t like the way that one case came out.’

However, he said, after Hunter Biden’s verdict, ‘I don’t hear a single Democrat crying foul.’

Durbin also addressed addiction and the toll it has taken on Americans. ‘There were so many thousands of American families that have been hurt painfully by addiction,’ the Illinois senator said. 

‘Now it’s touched the First Family of the United States. I know the president, it means so much to him personally, because of his love for his son. He and his — Jill have weathered this storm for many years. I’m sure their hearts are broken,’ he added. 

In a statement following his son’s guilty verdict, President Biden remarked on how proud he is of Hunter as a father, referring to his son’s battle with addiction. 

‘I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that,’ he said. 

Fox News’ Tyler Olson contributed to this report. 

WASHINGTON — A continuing focus on diversity appears to be the political strategy for how President Biden would approach filling any Supreme Court vacancies in a second term. 

Sources close to the White House and his re-election campaign say the president would use the successful nomination of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as a template for navigating any future high court opening.

For now, officials say he plans to more prominently tout Jackson’s confirmation to various key constituencies as the presidential campaign intensifies, especially to Black voters who will be key to his re-election.

After Justice Stephen Breyer announced his 2022 retirement, Biden committed early on to naming the first Black woman as his replacement and gathered a number of qualified jurists for initial vetting. That internal list then expanded before three finalists were ultimately reached — Jackson and judges Leondra Kruger and J. Michelle Childs. Kruger and Childs remain top contenders for the Supreme Court, sources say.

The president, in public remarks, has made much of the diversity of his judicial nominees for the courts. Almost two-thirds are women, more than twice those named by President Trump in his single term (Biden 127; 64% as of May 22, versus Trump 55 total; 24%). Biden has also named an equal percentage of members of a racial or ethnic minority group to the federal bench — about 64%.

Biden could make history with the first justice who identifies as Asian American or Pacific Islander and would have more than 30 AAPI judges he has named to the lower federal courts to choose from. 

But any retirement by Justice Clarence Thomas, who turns 75 June 23, or Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who turns 70 two days later, would put political pressure on the next president to name a Black or Latino to the Supreme Court.

Overall, Biden has been actively finding qualified federal candidates to fill bench vacancies. His 200th federal judge was confirmed by the Senate last month, slightly outpacing the number by his predecessor at this point in his presidency. 

The following is an unofficial list of potential candidates for the Supreme Court by Biden. It was compiled from a number of sources, including officials within his inner circle, his political campaign and Democratic political and legal circles. 

The current White House administration, like those before, quickly began compiling an informal list of possible high court nominees to consider in the event of a sudden vacancy. But serious vetting only begins when such a vacancy occurs or is announced in advance by a retiring justice.

Leondra Kruger, California Supreme Court Justice

Born in 1976, Kruger is a former Obama Justice Department lawyer and argued 12 cases before the Supreme Court. She also clerked for Justice John Paul Stevens and was a finalist for the 2022 court seat that went to Brown Jackson. Her sterling resume and relatively young age could continue to make Kruger a strong favorite for a Supreme Court seat, especially if Thomas retires. She’s considered something of a moderate on the state high court and often a ‘swing’ or deciding vote in close cases. But state judges rarely receive serious consideration for the U.S. Supreme Court. The last was Justice Sandra Day O’Connor in 1981. Kruger’s parents were both pediatricians. Her mother is Jamaican. Her late father was the son of Jewish immigrants. She gave birth to a daughter in March 2016.

Sri Srinivasan, D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Washington

Born in 1967 in India, Srinivasan was later named to the court in 2013 (97-0 vote), months before colleague Patricia Millett joined him. He is now chief judge on that bench. He was a finalist for the seat that Garland was nominated for. The son of Indian immigrants and raised in Kansas. Padmanabhan Srikanth Srinivasan was the principal deputy solicitor general at the Justice Department and argued more than two dozen cases before the Supreme Court. He would be the high court’s first Asian American. He clerked for Republican-nominated federal judges Harvie Wilkinson and Day O’Connor. Obama called him ‘a trailblazer who personifies the best of America.’ Known as low-key, practical and non-ideological, he may not excite many progressives, nor give conservatives much to dislike. 

Justice Elena Kagan has praised him (both worked together in the Obama SG’s office), saying Srinivasan ‘cools it down’ with his calm manner during oral arguments.

Elizabeth Prelogar, U.S. Solicitor General (pronounced: PRE’-low-guhr)

Born in 1980, Prelogar became the 40th solicitor general in October 2021, after serving for months in an acting role. The Idaho native clerked for justices Ginsburg and Kagan, a former solicitor general, and for then-Judge Merrick Garland on the D.C. Circuit appeals court. Besides Kagan, former solicitors general to later become a justice include William Howard Taft, Robert Jackson, Stanley Reed and Thurgood Marshall.

She was a beauty pageant contestant named Miss Idaho in 2004 and appeared last fall on the NPR quiz show, ‘Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me’ (her topic was vacuum cleaner salespeople).

Lisa Monaco, Deputy Attorney General

Born in 1968, Monaco was a former federal prosecutor and national security adviser under Obama from 2013-2017. She worked as a researcher under then-Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Joe Biden starting in 1992. Monaco would also be a favorite for attorney general in a second Biden term if Garland retires.

Candace Jackson-Akiwumi, 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Chicago

Born in 1979 in Norfolk, Virginia, both her parents are judges, U.S. District Judge Raymond Alvin Jackson and former Norfolk General District Court Judge Gwendolyn Jackson. A former federal defender in Chicago and, before that, a partner in a D.C. law firm, Jackson-Akiwumi was nominated by Biden in March 2021, one of three Black women named to appeals court seats in the administration’s first months.  

J. Michelle Childs, D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Washington

Born in 1966, Childs was nominated in December 2021 to serve on the high-profile D.C. Circuit appeals court, replacing the retiring Judge David Tatel. She was Biden’s second Black woman on the D.C. Circuit, after now-Justice Jackson. Sources say Rep. Clyburn (D-S.C.) strongly pushed the White House to name the South Carolina-based Childs to this seat. The D.C. Circuit is seen as something of a professional stepping stone to the Supreme Court. Besides Jackson, recent justices who earlier served on that appellate bench include John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Brett Kavanaugh and the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia. Childs had previously been a federal district court judge since 2010. The Detroit native went to law school at the University of South Carolina.

Myrna Pérez, 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, New York

Born in 1974, Pérez was a 2021 appointee to her current seat. She previously served at the progressive Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law as director of its Voting Rights and Elections Program. A native of San Antonio, she would be given serious consideration, especially if Sotomayor retired.  

Nancy Maldonado, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Judge, Chicago

Born in 1975, Maldonado was nominated for a seat on the 7th Circuit. She would be the first Hispanic judge on that federal appeals bench. Her nomination to the high court would have a strong backer in her home state of Illinois. 

Patricia Millett, D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Washington

Born in 1963, Millett was named in 2013 to a bench considered a stepping stone to the high court, where four current justices once served (so did Justice Scalia). Formerly a private Washington-based appellate attorney — Obama called her ‘one of the nation’s finest’ — who also had more than a decade experience in the U.S. Solicitor General’s office. Millett argued 32 cases before the Supreme Court, second-most ever for a female lawyer. Sources from both ideological stripes call her fair-minded, no-nonsense and non-ideological. Age may be a drawback for any future high court vacancies.

Her husband is U.S. Navy reservist Robert King, and the two met at a Methodist Church singles event.

Cindy Kyounga Chung, 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Pittsburgh

Born in 1975, Chung, a Korean-American native, is a Biden appointee to her current seat and a former U.S. attorney in Pittsburgh.

Roopali Desai, 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Phoenix, Arizona

Desai wasborn in 1978 in Toronto, Canada, to parents of Indian descent. After law school in Arizona, Desai, as a private attorney, worked successfully with the Arizona Secretary of State’s office to throw out challenges to the state’s 2020 presidential election results. She was then appointed by Biden to the largest federal appeals court. 

Lucy Haeran Koh, 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, San Francisco

Born in 1968, Koh was renominated in 2021 by Biden to the federal appeals court. Her 2016 nomination expired with the end of the 114th Congress, and then-President Trump subsequently named someone else to the seat. The Oklahoma native is of Korean descent. Koh had been overseeing separate multidistrict litigation involving such tech giants as Samsung and Apple, Inc. She is married to state Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar (see below).

Jacqueline Hong-Ngoc Nguyen, 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Pasadena, California

Born in 1965 in Dalat, Vietnam, and named to the court in 2012 after two years as a federal district court judge, Hong-Ngoc Nguyen could make history as the high court’s first Asian American justice. She is already the first Asian American woman to sit on a federal appeals court. A former state judge, federal prosecutor and private attorney, he moved with her family to the U.S. when she was 10, just after the fall of South Vietnam to the communists. Her parents eventually set up a doughnut shop in North Hollywood, California.

Michelle Friedland, 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, San Jose, California

Born in 1972 and named to the appeals court seat in 2014, Friedland was sworn in by former Justice O’Connor, for whom she once served as a law clerk.

Arianna Freeman, 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Philadelphia

Born in 1978, Freeman is a Biden appointee and the first Black woman on the 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia. Her service as a former federal public defender in the City of Brotherly Love was criticized by Senate Republicans during her judicial confirmation. 

Tamika Montgomery-Reeves, 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Wilmington, Delaware

Born in 1981 in Jackson, Mississippi, Montgomery-Reeves was named by Biden in 2022 to her current seat after her service on the Delaware Supreme Court. Her home state professional roots would be an obvious selling point to the president. 

Paul Watford, private attorney in Los Angeles and former judge

Born in 1967, Watford’s age and background until recently made him a favorite among some liberal court watchers. Named to the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in 2012, he resigned in May 2023 to go into private practice. He was a finalist for the seat that went to Garland in 2017, although that nomination ultimately failed. He clerked for conservative-libertarian former federal Judge Alex Kozinski on the 9th Circuit and later for Bader Ginsburg. He is also a former federal prosecutor and law firm partner. Supporters call the Orange County, California, native an ideological moderate, which may not sit well with progressives seeking a stronger liberal voice. But his rulings limiting police discretion in search and seizure cases have been applauded by left-leaning advocates.

Goodwin Liu, California Supreme Court Justice

Born in 1970 and of Taiwanese descent, Liu is a former Justice Ginsburg law clerk who helped draft her dissent in Bush v. Gore. Liu joined the state high court after twice being rejected in 2011 by Senate Republicans for a seat on a San Francisco-based federal appeals court. He was eventually filibustered after conservatives said he was ‘outside the mainstream,’ expressing concerns over his past statements on a variety of hot-button topics such as same-sex marriage and health care reform. A Liu nomination would be among the most contentious made by a Democratic president. 

Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, former California Supreme Court Justice

Born in 1972 in Mexico, Cuéllarwas named in 2021 as president of the D.C.-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Nicknamed ‘Tino,’ Cuellar served in the Obama and Clinton administrations and is a former academic specializing in administrative law. He is married to federal Judge Lucy Koh (see above).

Jane Kelly, 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Born in 1964, Kelly is only the second woman to serve on the St. Louis-based court, appointed in 2013 (96-0 vote). She spent most of her legal career as a federal public defender in Iowa. One of her biggest fans is fellow Iowan Republican Sen. Charles Grassley, ranking member on the Judiciary Committee.

Kelly graduated in 1991 from the same Harvard Law School class as Obama.

David Barron, 1st Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Boston

Born in 1967, Barron was confirmed to the bench in May 2014. He formerly served as acting assistant attorney general in the Obama administration, then went to Harvard Law School as a professor. He also clerked for Justice John Paul Stevens. Being a white male may hurt his chances if President Biden feels political pressure to replace Justice Ginsburg with another woman.

Robert Wilkins, D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Washington

Born in 1963, Wilkins is an Indiana native and was raised by a single mother. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1989. He filed a civil rights lawsuit in 1992 against the Maryland State Police after being pulled over for speeding after officers were instructed to focus on young Black males when making lawful traffic stops.

Cheryl Ann Krause, 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, Philadelphia

Born in 1968, Krause was a law clerk for two Republican-appointed court judges, including Justice Anthony Kennedy. She was named to her current seat in 2014 by Obama. 

Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)

A few members of Congress typically get mentioned on these lists, often as a political courtesy, especially to those senators who would vote on any nomination. Frequently mentioned are two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee (and former 2020 presidential candidates) who gained national prominence during the Justice Kavanaugh confirmation hearings.

Booker, born in 1969, is the former mayor of Newark and one of four Black senators. Klobuchar, born in 1960, was a county prosecutor and adviser to former Vice President Walter Mondale. She was mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate for Biden and has frequently been mentioned as a high court candidate, dating back to 2009.