Hunter Biden, in a surprising maneuver, has requested authorization from Judge Maryellen Noreika to subpoena former president Donald Trump, ex-attorneys general Bill Barr and Jeffrey Rosen, alongside former deputy AG Richard Donoghue. This comes after Biden’s plea deal collapsed in July, sparking a series of lawsuits against several parties including the IRS, Rudy Giuliani, a prominent MAGA supporter, and Trump himself.[Above The Law]
Biden argues that public reporting, claims by congressional Republicans, and Trump’s social media posts can substantiate his assertion of “incessant, improper, and partisan pressure applied by then President Trump to Messrs. Rosen, Donoghue, and Barr in relation to an investigation of Mr. Biden.”
He makes reference to public records that include Bill Barr’s book and Donoghue’s contemporaneous notes as evidence of this pressure. These documents recount how Trump used his office to push investigations into his political rivals. More specifically, Biden points to Barr’s appointment of then-US Attorney Scott Brady as evidence of a concerted effort to investigate claims against him and his father, Joe Biden.
Biden also attributes the withdrawal of his plea deal to political pressure, accusing Special Counsel David Weiss of capitulating to partisan influences and pursuing charges against him for denying his drug use on a gun application in 2018. Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, states that “That outside pressure culminated in Special Counsel Weiss then changing course and bringing this Indictment on September 14 against Mr. Biden, charging three felony counts for the same gun and same facts that just a few months prior Mr. Weiss had agreed to divert under a pre-trial diversion agreement.”
The defendants, according to Biden, possess exculpatory information that could vindicate him and potentially form the basis for a malicious prosecution claim. Interestingly, Trump himself has previously filed motions along similar lines, including a motion to dismiss his election interference case for selective and vindictive prosecution and a demand to subpoena various executive branch and congressional officials.[Court Listener][Court Listener]
Legal professionals will note, however, that while this might be seen as giving Trump a taste of his own medicine, the tactic might not hold up in court. The Justice Department has a history of fiercely protecting current and former high-ranking officials from being deposed. For instance, in the wrongful termination suit by former FBI agent Peter Strzok, the department put up a strong fight to prevent Trump and FBI Director Chris Wray’s depositions.[Above The Law]
Regardless of its chance of legal success, this strategy might be aimed at generating noise to counter Republican pressure on the DOJ to incarcerate Biden. Legal observers will be following these developments with great interest.[US v. Biden – Docket via Court Listener]