Department of Justice Archives - Page 3 of 5

DOJ Kills the China Initiative, Kowtowing to a Chinese-American Group with Documented Chinese Communist Party Ties

February 27, 2022February 26, 2022 Admin

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the termination of the China Initiative Wednesday citing agreement with Asian-American groups critical of the anti-espionage strategy.

While announcing the termination of the China Initiative Wednesday, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen launched the Strategy for Countering Nation-State Threats, a program aimed to counter espionage stemming from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

In addition to the high-profile December 2021 conviction of Harvard nanotechnology professor Charles Lieber, the Department of Justice website lists eight examples of successful 2021 China Initiative cases, which include crimes such as the theft of GE trade secrets, misleading global financial institutions, lying on government grant applications, illegally exporting $100,000 of U.S. goods to a Chinese military university, economic espionage against Coca-Cola, two cases involving the theft of trade secrets related to pediatric medical conditions and the illegal exportation of cesium atomic clocks.

Tom Cotton Freezes Confirmation of DOJ Nominees over Failure to Address Antifa Riots

February 3, 2022February 2, 2022 Minnesota Sun Staff

At least eight of Joe Biden’s nominations for the Department of Justice have been placed on hold by Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), due to the Department’s failure to answer Cotton’s questions about its inaction over the Antifa and Black Lives Matter riots of 2020.

As reported by Fox News, Cotton’s criticisms have focused specifically on the DOJ’s failure to properly defend a federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon, which ended up under siege by far-left domestic terrorists on a daily basis throughout 2020 and even into 2021. Cotton has already sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland pointing out that, on top of letting the courthouse itself be attacked, the DOJ has not offered any legal assistance to several U.S. Marshals who have been sued for defending the courthouse against rioters.

“These courageous officers were attacked by left-wing street militants with weapons such as mortar fire, ball bearings, and blinding lasers,” Cotton’s letter reads in part. “A refusal to represent these Deputy Marshals would violate the Department’s long-standing practice — not to mention its moral duty — to defend law-enforcement officers when they’re sued for actions in the line of duty.”

Former Obama White House Adviser Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Steal $218k From Schools He Founded

January 16, 2022 Admin

Former Obama White House adviser Seth Andrew this week pleaded guilty to participating in a wire fraud scheme in which he attempted to steal over $200,000 from a network of schools he helped found.

Andrew “admitted today to devising a scheme to steal from the very same schools he helped create,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement on the Justice Department’s website.

“Andrew now faces time in federal prison for abusing his position and robbing those he promised to help,” Williams noted.

Justice Department Planning to Form Special Domestic Terrorism Unit

January 12, 2022January 11, 2022 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is planning to form a special unit focused on the threat of domestic terrorism, a top official told lawmakers Tuesday.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen announced the creation of the new unit in his opening remarks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday.

“I decided to establish a domestic terrorism unit to augment our existing approach,” Olsen said. “This group of dedicated attorneys will focus on the domestic terrorism threat, helping to ensure that these cases are handled properly and effectively coordinated across the Department of Justice and across the country.”

Small Business Administration Not Taking Direct Action Against Partner Lenders That Issued Billions in Fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program Loans

January 11, 2022January 10, 2022 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Small Business Administration is not taking action against its partner lenders that issued billions of dollars in fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans, Just the News has learned.

Congress appropriated almost $1 trillion in forgivable PPP loans to assist businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Approximately 15% of the $961 billion is projected to have been obtained fraudulently, according to a study.

A House of Representatives panel estimated that $84 billion in PPP funds was issued fraudulently.

Thousands of Federal Prisoners Released Early Due to COVID Surge Do Not Have to Return to Prison

December 28, 2021December 27, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

On Tuesday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it would be permanently extending the early release of thousands of federal inmates who were set free due to a spike in COVID cases, as reported by the New York Post.

In doing so, the DOJ reversed an order previously made by President Donald Trump in January that would have seen such prisoners eventually returned to confinement. Instead, over 5,000 prisoners will now either remain in home confinement or be allowed to roam completely free.

Electric Truck Maker Pays $125 Million to Settle Charges It Defrauded Investors

December 26, 2021December 25, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Electric truck manufacturer Nikola announced Tuesday it had settled fraud charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), agreeing to pay the regulator $125 million.

The settlement is in response to allegations by the SEC that Nikola’s founder and former chief executive Trevor Milton misled investors about Nikola’s products and technological progress in order to boost the company’s share price. The SEC alleged that Milton misrepresented the anticipated costs and sources of electricity for its truck venture.

Milton was indicted by the Department of Justice in July on fraud charges, to which he pleaded not guilty.

Top Harvard Professor Found Guilty of Lying About Payments from China

December 24, 2021December 23, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

A prominent Harvard professor was found guilty Tuesday of lying about his ties to China, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Charles Lieber, a scientist in Harvard University’s chemistry and engineering departments, was found guilty on six counts of lying related to his work at the Wuhan University of Technology, the WSJ reported.

Lieber was first arrested by federal authorities in January 2020 and charged with making false statements regarding his participation in the Thousand Talents Plan, a Chinese recruitment program that aims to foster foreign academic talent. The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that Lieber was paid by the Wuhan University of Technology (WUT) “$50,000 USD per month, living expenses of up to 1,000,000 Chinese Yuan (approximately $158,000 USD at the time) and awarded him more than $1.5 million to establish a research lab at WUT.”

Bombshell Report: FBI Officials Had Sex with Foreign Prostitutes

December 16, 2021 Admin

Four FBI officials engaged in sexual intercourse with foreign prostitutes, according to an internal report.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) concluded an investigation into six FBI officials related to their involvement with foreign prostitutes, finding that four of the officials engaged in sexual intercourse, while a fifth solicited “commercial sex,” according to a report issued Tuesday by the DOJ OIG. A sixth official “committed misconduct” by failing to report the incidents, according to the report.

Biden’s Head Start Vaccination Requirement Could Have Detrimental Effects on Montana’s Rural Students

December 15, 2021December 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

President Joe Biden’s administration put a policy in place that requires all employees in a federal education program to get the COVID-19 vaccine, which program directors argue will have a detrimental effect on Montana’s programs that assist underserved communities in the state.

If enforced, the requirement will have a negative impact on Montana’s Head Start program, according to program directors and information provided to the Daily Caller News Foundation by the state’s Department of Justice (DOJ). The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), along with the White House, has mandated the vaccine for teachers and staff who work for Head Start and Early Head Start programs nationwide.

Head Start includes preschool programs for 3 and 4-year-old children, while Early Head Start programs are for infants, toddlers and pregnant women to “promote the school readiness of children ages birth to 5 from low-income families by supporting their development in a comprehensive way,” according to its website.

Commentary: Capitol Surveillance Footage of January 6th Will Tell the Real Story

December 4, 2021December 3, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

For months, Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice has tried every trick in the law books to conceal from Americans a massive trove of video evidence that captured all the activity at the Capitol complex on January 6. Federal judges have played along, approving hundreds of protective orders to keep video clips—particularly footage recorded by the Capitol Police’s extensive closed-circuit television system—out of the public eye.

Time, however, is running out for the government.

Rand Paul Urges Whistleblowers to Expose Biden Administration Abuses of Civil Liberties

November 22, 2021November 21, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Sen. Rand Paul sharply criticized the “politicized” FBI and the Department of Justice, calling for more whistleblowers to expose government trampling of American liberties.

“I think anytime someone is breaking the law in government, it’s a good idea to hear about it,” the Kentucky Republican said in a Thursday interview with The Daily Signal. “And so, frankly, yes, I think it is a good idea for people to reveal when the government’s breaking the rules.”

Paul’s remarks follow news that the head of the FBI’s Criminal and Counterterrorism divisions reportedly ordered agents Oct. 20 to identify threats against school board members and teachers with a “threat tag”—although Attorney General Merrick Garland told lawmakers the next day that the FBI was not using counterintelligence tools to target parents.

Amid Bias Rebuke, FBI Raids Homes of GOP Election Clerk, Conservative Activists in Colorado

November 21, 2021November 21, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Even as the Department of Justice Inspector General released a report this week criticizing the politicization of the department, the FBI on Tuesday raided the homes of a Republican election official and several of her associates in Mesa County, Colo., in connection with a dispute about efforts to preserve 2020 election files.

In collaboration with state and county law enforcement, the FBI raided the homes of Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters, Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert’s former campaign manager Sherronna Bishop, and two others.

The FBI operations targeting skeptics of the 2020 election results follow the bureau’s raids earlier this month on the homes of conservative guerrilla journalist James O’Keefe and several of his associates with Project Veritas.

Commentary: Prosecution of Project Veritas Sounds Warning About Two-Tier Justice and Big State Corruption

November 17, 2021November 16, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Whatever else can be said about the FBI’s vendetta against James O’Keefe and Project Veritas, his investigative journalism enterprise, it is a useful reminder of two things: 1) that we increasingly live in a two-tier society in which the lower tier can expect the arbitrary intrusion of all the coercive elements of the state, and 2) that the fundamental legitimacy of many important American institutions is draining away rapidly like a full bathtub that is suddenly unplugged.

Scott Johnson at Powerline has an excellent summary of the case thus far.

Last Thursday, the FBI conducted a raid against two former employees of Project Veritas.

A few days later, they conducted a dawn raid against O’Keefe himself. It was the full monty.

President Recalled, 17 Senators Suspended: Accusations of Transphobia, Election Integrity Rock Student Government

November 15, 2021November 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Students at the University of Houston voted in a Special Recall Election Oct. 26 and 27 to remove Student Government Association President Arsalan Darbin from his position.

A resolution to recall Darbin was set in motion Oct. 6 by Senator Abraham Sanchez, former president of the University of Houston College Democrats, who accused Darbin of fostering a hostile work environment.

“The resolution was very general, like I set a hostile work environment or fail to perform my duties,” Darbin told Campus Reform. “Just very general allegation[s]”.

DEA Directive to Stop Saying ‘Mexican Cartel’ Was the Biden Administration’s Way of ‘Appeasing’ Mexico, Recently Retired Agency Officials Say

November 15, 2021November 14, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Two law enforcement officers standing in the back of a truck

The directive for Drug Enforcement Administration officials to not use the term “Mexican cartel” came directly from the Biden administration to ease relations with the Mexican government, two recently retired DEA officials told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The DCNF exclusively obtained an email in August that instructed DEA officials to “now avoid saying ‘Mexican cartel’” when speaking with the media. The email was sent as drugs continued to surge across the U.S.-Mexico border.

One recently-retired DEA official told the DCNF that when the new administration came in, the Department of Justice (DOJ) required DEA to submit news interview requests for approval. The retired official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the DOJ declined many of the national news requests on top of the language guidance, but eventually eased up and allowed some to do local interviews where he used the term “Mexican drug cartel” and called each by its name.

Justice Department Sues Texas over New Election Law

November 6, 2021November 5, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice filed a complaint against Texas on Thursday, alleging certain provisions in the state’s new election law violated federal voting legislation.

The complaint alleged that certain provisions in Texas’ new election law, known as SB 1, violate Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act by denying voters, especially those with disabilities, “meaningful assistance” in the poll booth. The complaint also alleged that Texas’ law requiring the rejecting of ballots with certain errors that the DOJ claims are inconsequential violates the Civil Rights Act.

Commentary: Biden’s Unlawful Plan to Federalize Elections

October 24, 2021October 23, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The White House recently issued a statement regarding new actions dozens of federal agencies are taking related to voter registration. These actions come in response to an order President Joe Biden issued back in March.

The order commanded the heads of every federal agency to submit a plan outlining their strategy to engage in voter registration and mobilization efforts to the director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Susan Rice. This is an unlawful effort by the Biden administration to federalize elections and keep the president and his political party in power.

DOJ Ends Case Quota for Immigration Judges Set by Trump Admin

October 22, 2021October 21, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice ended a Trump-era case quota for immigration judges, CNN Politics reported on Wednesday.

Judges said the Trump administration’s quota policy prioritized moving through cases quickly rather than due process for all immigrants and wasn’t fair, according to documents obtained by CNN. Immigration judges are tasked with moving through a 1.5 million case backlog, and case quotas didn’t necessarily make a difference in how quickly cases were processed, CNN reported.

Facebook Settles with Department of Justice over Claims It Discriminated Against U.S. Workers

October 20, 2021October 19, 2021 Admin

Facebook reached separate settlement agreements with the Department of Justice and Department of Labor on Tuesday, resolving claims that the tech giant discriminated against U.S. workers in hiring and recruiting.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) sued Facebook in December 2020, alleging the company refused to hire or recruit qualified U.S. workers in thousands of open positions by reserving spots in its workforce for temporary visa holders through its permanent labor certification (PERM) program. The DOJ also alleged that Facebook intentionally tried to deter U.S. workers from applying for certain positions.

Mollie Hemingway Commentary: Taking on the Establishment

October 19, 2021October 19, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Before the 2018 midterm elections, Trump’s political advisors were thinking about the president’s re-election bid and noticed a curious commonality among incumbent presidents who didn’t get re-elected: they all faced challengers from within their own party.

Five U.S. presidents since 1900 have lost their bids for a second term. William Taft lost to Woodrow Wilson, Herbert Hoover lost to Franklin Roosevelt, Gerald Ford lost to Jimmy Carter, Jimmy Carter lost to Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush lost to Bill Clinton. While each election is determined by unique factors, all five of these failed incumbents dealt with internal party fights or serious primary challenges.

‘Just Unconscionable’: Parents Protest Outside the Justice Department Against ‘Domestic Terrorist’ Label

October 19, 2021October 18, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Frustration at school boards boiled over for some parents and activists who protested outside of the Department of Justice building in Washington, D.C. Sunday.

A small crowd gathered for the “Parents Are Not ‘Domestic Terrorists’ Rally,” a reference to Merrick Garland’s Oct. 4 memorandum that called on the FBI to “use its authority” in response to the “disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff.”

Garland’s statement followed a letter from the National School Board Association (NSBA) that asked the federal government to get involved in the alleged “immediate threat” of violence from parents against American public schools and education officials. The letter encouraged President Joe Biden’s administration to use statutes such as the USA PATRIOT Act to address actions that could be “equivalent to a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes.”

Commentary: Spy Couple Follow in the Grand Tradition of Treasonous Leftist Couples

October 18, 2021October 17, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

In the wake of the recent arrest of Maryland nuclear engineer, Jonathan Toebbe, and his wife, Diana Toebbe on charges they tried to sell classified nuclear warship information to a foreign country, the mainstream media has focused on the “mystery” of how this could happen. But very little media coverage has focused on their progressive political background—the most likely key to their misdeeds.

In fact, strangely enough, husband and wife traitor teams are often linked to left-wing politics. Why hasn’t the establishment media focused on this tie?

Parents Announce ‘Not Domestic Terrorists’ Rally in Front of the Justice Department

October 17, 2021October 16, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Parents protesting certain library books in children's schools

Northern Virginia parents plan to protest in front of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. Sunday, according to a flyer posted online.

A flyer reveals plans for a “Parents Are Not ‘Domestic Terrorists’ Rally Oct. 17. “Stand up, speak up, fight back!” the memo reads. “Bring friends, be heard … you can make a difference!”

News broke Wednesday that a Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) student was allegedly raped in a school bathroom in May by a male student who wore a skirt. The victim’s father, Scott Smith, was arrested at a LCPS school board meeting weeks later for resisting arrest, and the perpetrator – who was charged with two counts of forcible sodomy – allegedly assaulted another girl at the school he transferred to following the initial incident, Daily Wire reported.

Trump Wishes Ashli Babbitt a Happy Birthday, Calls for DOJ to Reopen Investigation into Her Death

October 12, 2021October 11, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Former President Donald Trump appeared in a video message to wish happy birthday to the late Ashli Babbitt, the woman fatally shot by a police officer at the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 breach. Trump additionally took the opportunity to call for the Justice Department to reopen its investigation into her death.

The Capitol Police officer who fired the shot that killed Babbitt was formerly exonerated by the department following an assessment by the Office of Professional Responsibility that concluded his conduct was “lawful and within Department policy.”

Commentary: Merrick Garland’s Disdain for Middle America

October 10, 2021October 10, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Are you upset that school officials force your kids to mask outdoors and teach them to hate themselves because of their skin color? You might be a terrorist, according to the Department of Justice.

Attorney General Merrick Garland this week issued a memo directing his agency to investigate and counter alleged threats to school board officials and teachers. The memo was prompted by spirited protests happening at school board meetings across the country. Parents are fed up with left-leaning bureaucrats and their insidious ideas for kids. It’s no surprise some parents get very passionate about these issues—it’s their own kids they’re trying to protect.

Senate GOP Releases Post-Election Report on Trump-Justice Dept, Contradicting Findings from Dems

October 8, 2021October 7, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday released their review of President Trump’s management of the Justice Department after the 2020 presidential election, concluding the former president’s fears about election fraud were based on “legitimate concerns” – one day after Democrats who lead the chamber said their findings show Trump tried to install a loyalist atop the agency to investigate unfounded fraud claims.

The GOP’s 140-page review, titled, “In their own words: A factual summary of testimony from senior Justice Department officials related to the events from December 14, 2020, to January 3, 2021” offers starkly different conclusions from those reached by chamber Democrats.

Commentary: Biden’s Attack on Public School Parents Cannot Stand

October 7, 2021 Admin

President Joe Biden’s Attorney General, Merrick Garland’s memo directing the FBI to investigate parents who speak out at school board meetings has shocked the nation.

The Biden administration has gone into full attack mode against the First Amendment right to petition the government as Attorney General Merrick Garland has declared that parents opposing Critical Race Theory before their local school boards should be treated as terrorists under the Patriot Act.

‘Totalitarian Tyranny’: Parents Groups Slam Attorney General Garland for Turning FBI on Their Activism

October 6, 2021October 6, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Parents who protest public school policies on race, gender and COVID-19 are crying foul after Attorney General Merrick Garland promised to “discourage” and prosecute “harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence” against school boards, administrators, teachers and staff.

His “mobilization of [the] FBI against parents is consistent with the complete weaponization of the federal government against ideological opponents,” Rhode Island mother Nicole Solas, who is waging a public records battle with her school district over race-related curriculum, told Just the News.

Attorney General Merrick Garland Instructs FBI to Investigate Alleged ‘Threats’ by Parents Against School Officials

October 6, 2021October 5, 2021 Cooper Moran

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) field office, Minneapolis Division, at 1501 Freeway Boulevard in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on Monday that the Department of Justice and the FBI are launching an effort to address the alleged increase in “threats” made against school officials.

According to a statement from the Department of Justice, Garland has directed “the FBI and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to meet in the next 30 days with federal, state, Tribal, territorial and local law enforcement leaders to discuss strategies for addressing this disturbing trend.”

The Department of Justice Bans No-Knock Entries, Chokeholds, and Other Practices

September 16, 2021 Admin

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced a comprehensive ban on numerous practices in law enforcement, aimed at curbing tactics that some claim can lead to instances of so-called “police brutality,” according to Politico.

In a statement issued by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, the department said it would be banning the use of chokeholds and carotid restraints by law enforcement officers, except in circumstances where “the officer has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to the officer or to another person.” The department is also banning no-knock warrants, except in situations where an officer believes that announcing their identity could lead to physical harm.

The Department of Justice Asks Federal Judge to Block Texas Abortion Law

September 16, 2021 Admin

The Department of Justice asked a federal judge late Tuesday night to block Texas’ Heartbeat Act, which prohibits abortions after the baby’s heartbeat can be detected.

The DOJ called for a temporary restraining order or injunction against the new law, arguing that the Heartbeat Act intends “to prevent women from exercising their constitutional rights.”

Commentary: Justice Department’s Foremost Felony Charge Against January 6 Participants May Be on Thin Ice

September 12, 2021September 11, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

More than eight months after the worst attack on Washington since the Civil War, as Joe Biden describes it, not a single American has been charged with sedition or treason related to the alleged “insurrection” on January 6, 2021.

As Ben Boychuk explained in his Thursday essay, despite many harsh warnings insisting the government would build sedition cases, so far Biden’s Justice Department has failed to live up to its promise.

DOJ Prepares Second Antitrust Suit Against Google over Digital Ads

September 6, 2021September 5, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is readying an antitrust lawsuit against Google over its digital advertising practices, a source familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

The lawsuit will be based on the ongoing DOJ investigation into allegations Google illegally maintains a monopoly in the digital advertising market, and could be filed as soon as December, the source told Bloomberg. Though the decision to file the complaint has yet to be finalized, the suit would be the DOJ’s second antitrust challenge against Google, following an October lawsuit which took aim at Google’s search business.

America First Legal Requests Investigation into the Biden Administration’s Afghanistan Withdrawal, Demands Answers on ‘Vetting’ of Evacuees

September 2, 2021September 1, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

America First Legal is demanding an investigation into the Biden administration regarding its withdrawal from Afghanistan and is requesting answers from a number of government agencies over the handling of evacuees, according to a letter and six Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests first obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The group has asked the Department of Defense (D0D) acting inspector general for an investigation into the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, specifically into the reported “‘Kill List’ Given to the Taliban,” information revealing what the president knew from intelligence reports, details about the “abandoned equipment and assets” and about leaving Bagram air base, as well as information about the “effective deployment of US air force assets.”

Authorities to Shut Down New York Prison Where Jeffrey Epstein Died

August 30, 2021August 29, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Authorities on Thursday announced they plan to shut down a federal jail in New York City where alleged sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein died in 2019.

Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in lower Manhattan, apparently due to suicide, The New York Times reported. The prison guards were later accused of sleeping and surfing the internet while on duty.

Biden DOJ Declines to Appeal Court Order Blocking Reparations for Non-White Farmers

August 26, 2021August 25, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday failed to formally file an appeal in federal court against an injunction that was issued against one of the most controversial aspects of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill, leaving the future of planned reparations for non-White farmers in doubt, as reported by Politico.

Monday was the deadline for the DOJ to do so, 60 days after federal judges ultimately ruled that the $4 billion program, which would forgive the debts of exclusively non-White farmers, was unconstitutional and thus could not be implemented. The measure was one of many elements of the bill passed by Congress and signed into law by Joe Biden in March.

Former Head of OxyContin Giant Purdue Pharma Denies Fault or Blame in Opioid Crisis

August 23, 2021August 22, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The former president and board chair of Purdue Pharma testified in court on Wednesday that he, his family and the company are not at fault for the opioid crisis, CBS News reported.

Richard Sackler, 76, who is a member of the family that owns the OxyContin maker, denied responsibility at a White Plains, New York, bankruptcy hearing, CBS News reported.

Obama-Appointed Judge Says It Is Unconstitutional and ‘Racist’ to Prosecute Previously-Deported Illegal Aliens

August 20, 2021August 19, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

On Wednesday, a judge appointed by Barack Obama argued that it is “racist” to prosecute illegal aliens who return to the country after being deported and commit crimes on American soil, as reported by Breitbart.

Judge Miranda Du, appointed by Obama to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada in 2012, made the statements in a ruling in favor of a previously-deported illegal named Gustavo Carrillo-Lopez. Lopez had filed a motion to dismiss an indictment against him for the crime of illegally re-entering the country, baselessly claiming that such a charge was “discriminatory.” He claimed, without evidence, that federal law allowing for the deportation of illegals is in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

GOP Senators Accuse Biden Officials of Working at the ‘Behest of the Abortion Lobby,’ Ignoring the Law

August 12, 2021August 11, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Joe Biden at desk, looking over documents

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra violated federal conscience-protection laws when they told the Department of Justice to drop a lawsuit against a hospital that forced a nurse to assist an elective abortion, Republican senators said in a Wednesday letter.

The Daily Caller News Foundation first obtained the letter to the high ranking Biden administration officials, which demands an explanation as to why Becerra and Garland acted to dismiss the lawsuit filed under former President Donald Trump’s administration in December 2020.

Commentary: Mandatory Vaccinations Undermine Roe v. Wade and Choice

August 7, 2021August 6, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Well, isn’t this interesting.

Recall Roe v. Wade? The famous abortion decision from the U.S. Supreme Court that was issued in January of 1973? It said this:

This right of privacy, whether it be founded in the Fourteenth Amendment‘s concept of personal liberty and restrictions upon state action, as we feel it is, or … in the Ninth Amendment‘s reservation of rights to the people, is broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.” — Roe, 410 U.S. at 153

In the vernacular, this quickly was reduced to a pro-Roe movement that self-identified as “pro-choice.” Or, as the saying goes, “abortion rights” boosters supported the idea of “my body, my choice.”

DOJ Legal Threats Against State Election Audits Suggest Unease about Potential Findings

August 5, 2021 Admin

The U.S. Department of Justice’s recent guidance on the process of state election audits indicates that the federal agency is apparently deeply unsettled by the string of election audits and election reform efforts carried out by state Republicans since last November’s presidential election.

The guidance, distributed last week and directed in part toward state legislatures, instructs investigators on “how states must comply with federal law” when conducting election audits. It also addresses efforts by some state legislatures to repeal emergency COVID-19 voting rules that other states have in some cases sought to make permanent.

DOJ Drops Investigation into Gov. Cuomo’s COVID Nursing Home Policy

August 2, 2021August 1, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday celebrated the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) decision to drop its investigation into his policy that sent COVID-19 patients into nursing homes, but with several other probes ongoing, his fate is still unclear.

The DOJ announced last week it would not investigate Cuomo’s March 2020 order forcing nursing homes to accept coronavirus patients, prompting the governor to hold a press conference Monday in which he described allegations his nursing home order caused deaths as “outrageous.” At least 4,000 nursing home residents died when the order was active, according to a report from New York Attorney General Letitia James, with the New York State Department of Health knowingly undercounting nursing home deaths, as first reported by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Biden to Push for Amnesty in Reconciliation Package

August 1, 2021July 31, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Joe Biden and his administration sitting in the Oval Office at the White House

In a meeting at the White House with Democratic lawmakers, Joe Biden reaffirmed his support for the radical notion of including mass amnesty for illegal aliens in the proposed reconciliation bill, according to CNN.

Biden met with 11 lawmakers – five senators and six members of the House – on Thursday to discuss a possible amnesty deal following the latest blow to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was an executive order signed by then-President Barack Obama in 2012 to provide blanket amnesty to illegal aliens who came into the country as minors.

Judge Andrew Hanen, of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, ruled earlier this month that as the law had been implemented via executive order only after its legislative counterpart, the DREAM Act, failed to pass through Congress, the law was unconstitutional. The order blocks any future illegals from applying for the amnesty, but does not affect current or past applicants.

In Suppression of First Amendment, Biden Forbids Immigration Judges from Using the Term ‘Alien’

July 31, 2021July 30, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Biden Administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) issued an order last week demanding that immigration judges no longer use the term “alien” when referring to illegal aliens in court or in their written opinions, according to the Washington Free Beacon.

The order, first issued on July 23rd, came from a DOJ official named Jean King. King’s order applies to all 539 immigration judges in the country, and orders them to instead use more politically correct terms, such as “respondent, applicant, petitioner, beneficiary, migrant, noncitizen, or non-U.S. citizen.” “Alien” has been the correct terminology for anyone who enters the United States illegally ever since the Immigration and Nationality Act, which defines an alien as “any person not a citizen or national of the United States.”

In the order, King admitted that the DOJ decision was influenced in part by the mainstream media, citing the fact that the Associated Press first decided back in 2013 to drop the use of the term “illegal immigrant,” which led to a left-wing trend to replace the word “illegal” with “undocumented.” Since taking office in January, Biden has taken steps to remove the use of the phrases “alien” and “illegal immigrant” through several executive orders. Some radical Democrats, including Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), have advocated for passing a law to ban the use of such phrases. And in New York City, a recent law was passed to make it a crime to use the phrases “illegal” and “illegal alien.”

Biden’s Department of Justice Drops Charges Against Chinese Soldiers Who Lied to Acquire Jobs at American Universities

July 28, 2021July 27, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

Department of Justice building, street view

The Biden Administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) announced last week that it was dropping charges against five members of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who had lied about their histories to obtain jobs at American universities, Breitbart reports.

The five soldiers were seeking visas in order to apply for jobs and doctoral positions at several universities in the states of California and Indiana. They had all been arrested in the summer of last year as part of a wider crackdown on Chinese infiltrations into American upper education. All five of them sought either J-1 or F-1 visas in order to apply to positions at the University of California, San Francisco, the University of California, Davis, Stanford University, Indiana University, and the University of California, Los Angeles.

However, officials revealed the stunning decision to drop the charges in statements to the Wall Street Journal last week, claiming that since “the defendants had all been detained or under other restrictions in the U.S. since their arrest a year ago,” the agency had determined “that further litigation in the group of cases would unnecessarily prolong their departure from the U.S., and that their situations since their arrests amounted to sufficient punishment and deterrence.”

Commentary: FBI Caught Lying About ‘Lego Man’ Charged in January 6 Capitol Breach

July 14, 2021July 13, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice now says a DoJ court document claiming to have recovered a “fully constructed U.S. Capitol Lego set” from the home of a man charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol breach was “a miscommunication,” and the Lego set was actually unconstructed and in a box. Robert Morss, 27, is accused of leading fellow rioters in what prosecutors say was “one of the most intense and prolonged clashes” with officers on Jan. 6.

The new court filing said, “In original detention memoranda, the undersigned stated that law enforcement found a ‘fully constructed US Capitol Lego set.’ That statement appears to be inaccurate. The Lego set was in a box and not fully constructed at the time of the search.”

Once again, the Justice Department has had to admit that they lied about events surrounding January 6th. While the Lego lie may seem silly, it is part of a pattern that federal law enforcement has demonstrated in this case, and indeed over the past five years.

Biden’s DOJ Comes Out Swinging Against West Virginia, Arkansas Trans Laws

June 19, 2021June 18, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

The Department of Justice argued in court filings Thursday that transgender legislation passed in West Virginia and Arkansas is unconstitutional.

The DOJ filed statements of interest supporting lawsuits filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against West Virginia’s House Bill 3293 and Arkansas’ “Save Adolescents From Experimentation Act,” otherwise known as the SAFE Act.

The West Virginia bill bans biological males at public schools from participating in women’s sports in middle school, high school, and college. The SAFE Act prohibits physicians from performing gender transition procedures, such as puberty blockers or “top” and “bottom” surgeries, on minors.

REPORT: Biden, DOJ Plan to Challenge Laws Banning Biological Boys from Girls’ Sports

May 6, 2021May 5, 2021 Minnesota Sun Staff

President Joe Biden’s administration and the Department of Justice are reportedly preparing to challenge bills banning biological males from women’s sports, multiple sources told the Daily Beast.

“We are having conversations with the Biden administration about additional actions that they should be taking as it relates to anti-LGBTQ bills that we’re seeing in these states,” Human Rights Campaign (HRC) president Alphonso David told the Daily Beast. “But we want to make sure we don’t lose sight of how important those words are, and how important his early actions have been to support and protect LGBTQ people throughout the country.”