podcast. available in the apple store and google play. scan the qr code to download for you today or visit the website, c-span.org/c-span now. your front row seat to washington any time, anywhere. next attorney general merrick garland testifying on the president's 2025 budget request for the justice department before the house recreations of committee. he was questioned on a variety of topics and putting holding china and mexico accountable to the role in the crisis. the new role for firearm dealers in the special counsel investigation into president biden's handling of classified duct and grade it runs just over two hours. >>

>> without objection, the chair is authorized to declare a recess. we welcome the attorney general of the united states, merrick garland. testified on the department of justice fiscal year 2025 budget request. the department request of about $38 billion in discretionary sources, an increase of nearly 2% over the fiscal year of 2024 and access levels. once again, the department's budget submission uses names

such as, quote, upholding the rule of law and keeping our country safe is the job of congress to examine whether agency priorities lineup with these themes and fund the department appropriately and accordingly. unfortunately, the department's budget underwhelmed's, and has not thoughtfully identified areas where strategic reductions could be made, aside from aid to local law enforcement. i am not advocating for arbitrary large-scale reductions. that would make the department an effective, and our country less safe. however, i do believe that robust law enforcement and strategic reductions are not conflicting goals. it just requires hard work and

thoughtful prioritization. so let's examine the departments of fiscal '25 priorities. the department prioritizes combating drug trafficking and preventing overdose deaths. and you know that the fentanyl epidemic accounts for some two thirds of the more than 110,000 drug overdose deaths each year. while the submission rightly highlights both defeating drug cartels and combating the drug poisoning epidemic in communities. the budget puts a departmentwide emphasis on equipping federal agents with body cameras. drug cartels, and their crime

syndicates in the united states, must be decimated, period. the death and devastation that cartels and gangs are inflicting on american families, bringing them to justice ought to be the top priority. whether they have a camera attached to them is secondary by far. despite this administration's best efforts to push the issue to the back burner, the biden border crisis continues, and shows no signs of stopping. people on drugs continue to flow across the southern border and blatant contradiction of our laws. in an ever evolving situation, last year, 50 times, chinese citizens were apprehended

crossing illegally from mexico compared to two years ago. 50 times worse. when landowners attempted to protect their life and property, they end up being arrested. when will this madness stop? perhaps when this administration takes the cuffs off law enforcement and allows them to do their jobs. next the department prioritizes combating violent crime and gun violence. in the 2023 violent crime survey, the major city chiefs association voted for a decrease in homicide, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault in american cities read however, these decreases were slight and the numbers remain unacceptably high.

nevertheless, i'm hopeful that this change in direction signifies a lasting about-face by those who embrace the defined the police movement and vindication for those of us who decried it from the very beginning. with the transfer now seeming to go in the right direction it confounds me that the department seeks to cut law enforcement assistance including reductions to state and local law enforcement assistance, friends and the state criminal alien assistance program. another priority listed by the department is protecting national security by countering terrorism, cyber threats and nationstate threats. to that end, i will command the

national security division for acknowledging in their budget submission the october 7th terrorist attack on israel by the terror group hamas. noting that the attack has led to an increase in terrorism related activity domestically and overseas. such a warning has taken on greater importance in recent weeks. the chanting of death to america is no longer confined to middle eastern capitals. they are now being heard on american streets. if such chants are not terrorism related conduct, i will tell you, it's pretty close. i would like to hear if the attorney general agrees, and what action the department

might take regarding these developments aside from issuing statements of condemnation. the department of justice over the last four years has picked sides when prosecuting, and ultimately failed to uphold the rule of law equally and fairly when it comes to american citizens and even american businesses. it is not surprising to phrases notably absent from the budget request are, quote, equal justice under law and respect for separation of powers. in closing, mr. attorney general, where we can find agreement, you will find support here. but when priorities diverge agency actions are at odds with what we consider good government and common sense, we will respond accordingly.

we are recognizing that you have an incredibly demanding job. and i appreciate your being here today. we look forward to working with the ranking member and all members of the subcommittee to appropriately fund important missions of the department of justice. as this year's appropriations process moves forward. at this time, i want to recognize mr. cartwright for any remarks he may wish to make. >> thank you, chairman rogers. i would like to echo you in welcoming attorney general merrick garland back to the subcommittee to assess the department of justice fiscal year 2025 budget request. i thank you for your continued leadership at the department of justice, for leading the men and women who work tirelessly to continue the pursuit of

truth and justice. resources provided for the justice department are and will continue to be under a microscope. the mission of the justice department remains unchanged. i look forward to working with you to make sure we are making smart investments, keeping the community safe. just last week, fbi director ray was before us and we heard about the real challenges that the fbi along with the state, local and tribal law enforcement partners are facing. especially in keeping deadly fentanyl off our streets. i heard him clearly. state and local law enforcement are asking for more support from the fbi, not less. and i trust that could be said for many other bureaus in the department, as well. further, the defense of our national security and mitigation of emerging foreign and domestic threats including cyber is critical. i view it as the main mission,

our paramount responsibility keeping americans safe, here in congress, and the department's role of upholding the rule of law and preserving our democratic values for free and fair elections cannot be understated. to carry out the department's broad missions, your fiscal year 2025 budget request seeks 38.9 billion in discretionary funding, a 5% increase above the fiscal year 2024 and enacted level. your request prioritizes funding for the over 100,000 employees of the department of justice and makes vital increases to every federal law enforcement agency in the u.s. attorney's offices. you have requested a strong increase to the violence against women act grants as well as strong increases for

hiring granson the justice assistance grants formula funding for state and local law enforcement. i look forward to working with chairman rogers and you, attorney general garland, on ensuring that we sustain investments that are state and local law enforcement partners rely on. congress can't ignore the challenges that our communities face back at home. attorney general garland, once again, welcome. thank you for being here. i look forward to your testimony and working with you on ensuring that we provide what the department of justice needs for fiscal year 2025. i yield back, mr. chairman. >> mr. attorney general, you're now recognized for opening statements. without objection, your written statement will be entered into the record. i will ask that you try to keep your statement to five minutes or thereabouts so we can have additional time for questions. >> thank you, chairman rogers.

distinguished members of the subcommittee. the opportunity to discuss the justice department's funding request for the school year 2025. since i last appeared before you come a more than 115,000 public servants that make up the justice department had continued to work tirelessly to fulfill our mission, keep our country safe, protect civil rights and uphold the rule of law. over the past year, our u.s. attorney's office, law enforcement agents and grantmaking experts have worked together with police and community partners across the country to help drive down violent crime. we have zeroed in on the individuals and gains responsible for the greatest violence. critical investments in police departments, hire more officers, and dedicate resources to initiatives aimed at preventing and disrupting violence before it occurs.

we have gone after the cartels responsible for trafficking deadly fentanyl into our communities and brought their leaders to justice here in the united states. we have prosecuted fraud, covered funds stolen from american taxpayers and challenged the legal monopolies that hurt seamers and workers. we have worked to defend reproductive freedoms protected by federal law and monitoring laws and actions that infringe on those protections. we have worked to combat a disturbing spike in threats of violence against those who serve the public. against judges, police officers, members of congress, and even against our own employees. we have worked to aggressively investigate, prosecute and disrupt hate times that not only harm individuals, but strike fear across communities. in everything we do, we have worked to enjoy the equal

protection of law that is foundational to our democracy. i am proud of the work that we have done, and i am deeply proud of the way the departments public service from our agents to our attorneys to administrative staff have gone about their work. they have conducted themselves in a way that would make the american people proud. but we recognize that we have so much more to do. our fiscal year 2025 budget request reflects the difficult budget environment that we are in, and the extremely difficult budget choices we've had to make because of it. it also reflects the resources that we need now more than ever. to continue our work. when i became attorney general three years ago, i knew that grappling with violent crime that surged during the pandemic would be one of the greatest

challenges we would face at the justice department. i am glad to be able to report that last year, we saw a significant decrease in overall violent crime across the country compared to the previous year, including an over 13% decline in homicides. that's the largest one year decline in homicides in over 30 years. and data indicates that this decline is continuing. as the wall street journal reported just this week, in the first three months of this year, homicides dropped 20% across 133 cities, compared to the same period last year. but i want to be very clear, there is no x optimal level of violent crime. too many communities are still struggling, and too many people are still scared. the hard-fought progress we are seeing can easily slip away, so we must remain focused and

vigilant. we continue our efforts to drive down violent crime and keep our country safe from a range of threats. we are seeking a total of $21 billion to support the efforts of the fbi, atf, dea, u.s. marshals service, u.s. attorney's office as well as the criminal division and national security division. we will use these resources to continue our fight against gun violence, prosecute illegal gun traffickers, straw purchasers, and invest in advanced technological tools like ballistics analysis, firearms tracing, gun intelligence centers and local fusion cells. we will use these resources to strengthen our work, to counter both foreign and domestic terrorism. as the fbi director has testified, we are facing an increasing threat of foreign terrorism since october 7th.

we will also use these resources to continue to counter the threats that the governments of iran, russia, china and north korea pose to our national security and our economic stability. and we will use these resources to continue our efforts to dismantle the global fentanyl supply chain and to break apart the cartels that are responsible for flooding poison into our communities. as we deploy our own prosecutorial and investigative resources, we also recognize that the departments partnerships have been and will continue to be some of the most powerful tools we have two battle violent crime. that's why we are seeking investments in the departments three grantmaking components. the office of justice programs, the office community-oriented policing services in the office of violence against women. they provide direct support to community and law enforcement partners through more than 200

grant programs. our budget programs request more than $4.3 billion to support public safety efforts of our state, local, tribal and territorial law enforcement and community partners. with that amount, we are requesting $2.5 billion for our pilot program to support law enforcement agencies across the country and their efforts to hire full-time law enforcement professionals. and we are requesting $120.5 million as part of our new violent crime reduction and prevention fund. the fund, 940 detectives at the state and local level. as i've noted before, the justice department was founded in 1870. one of the principal purposes was to protect civil rights. today, protecting the safety and civil rights of everyone in this country remains our urgent obligation. our budget seeks $201.3 million

for the civil rights division to continue its essential work, including its efforts to deter and prosecute hate crimes, ensure constitutional policing, enforce federal laws prohibiting discrimination in all of its forms, and to protect the rights of all eligible citizens to vote and have that vote counted. the right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy. protecting that rate also requires us to protect the citizens who rely on -- who we rely on to fairly administer voting. our democracy cannot function if officials, workers and volunteers who administer our elections have to fear for their lives just for doing their jobs. the justice department is aggressively investigating and prosecuting those who threaten election workers with violence.

we will continue to do so. as i said, i am extremely proud of the departments employees for doing the work necessary to advance the departments mission. every day, their work brings them face to face with some of our country's greatest challenges. every day, many of them risked their lives to protect the public. i am grateful to them. i respectively ask for your support for the fiscal year 2025 budget requests so we can continue our work on behalf of the american people. >> thank you, attorney general garland. we will now proceed under the five minute rule with questions for the witness. we will begin by recognizing myself. >> you mentioned in your

testimony about being here last year at this time. this time last year, too, there were 120,000 people who died because of our inability to stop the slower fentanyl especially. the most recent data from the cdc shows that from may '22 to may '23, for the first time in american history, over 112,000 americans died from a drug overdose. 2200 of those from the state of

kentucky alone. fentanyl remains the primary driver of the increase in overdose steps and young americans have been particularly hard hit. teenagers, 84% of fatal overdoses involved fentanyl. almost all. last week, fbi director wray was testifying here. he said, quote, the last two years in a row, the fbi seized enough fentanyl to kill 270 million american people. there can be no doubt that a tragically high amount of narcotics is slipping through the southern border. in the border crisis created by this administration is a dream scenario for cartels. they've never had it so good.

the departments budget submission is listed combating drug trafficking and preventing overdose deaths as the top priority. multiple agencies and components within the department of justice implementing strategist to counter fentanyl. how are you assuring and ensuring that agencies don't silo their intelligence? and that these efforts complement rather than inhibit each other? >> a very important point, mr. chairman. fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat this country has ever faced. it's extraordinarily cheap to make, profitable to sell. because of how often it can be

fatal, the dea has said that just one pill can kill. so the justice department and the government as a whole, all government and all department approach to this question. you are exactly right. we have to prevent any kind of silo in. fbi, dea, marshall's and the criminal division, civil division, and grants to the local and state government and law enforcement are all combined to work together to battle this scourge. it begins with the precursor companies in china. you can't make the fentanyl without the precursors. we are doing everything we can. we have charged and indicted the precursor companies. the treasury department has sanctioned the precursor companies. the precursors then move into mexico.

i have personally traveled to mexico three times. the deputy attorney general has also traveled at least three times. other high government officials have traveled to persuade the mexican government to put controls on the precursors, and to stop the precursors from coming in. in mexico, we are working with the mexican marines and the mexican army to destroy and take down the cartels, in particular, to get the extradition and assistance of the cartel members we have indicted in the united states. we've indicted dozens of members of mexican cartels. we have obtained accessible extraditions of people like one of those sons of all chop up. without support bringing these people to the united states. what happens is exactly as you say, it crosses the southern

border. the secretary of homeland security has testified that most of this comes through the ports of entry crossing the border. the most necessary point is for more money for the department of homeland security. i hate to be her asking for money for another department. if we are going to stop fentanyl from coming in, they need large x-ray machines, fast x-ray machines that can look in these trucks and suvs, these passenger cars as they come across the border. can fbi and dea in the united trades accept the traffickers once they come into the united states. and in combined operations including work from marshall's, the u.s. attorneys offices, investigate using the latest investigative tools and prosecute. the dea has at the very end of the line and public affairs campaign. we have to cut off the demand,

as well. that's why we emphasize that one pill can kill. that's why i went to the dea headquarters and met with the families, the very kinds of families you are talking about. young people who have died taking a pill they had no idea was fentanyl. >> what percentage of your drug trafficking work, what percentage tied to illegal smuggling from mexico? >> i cannot give a number in that regard. as i said, the vast majority of fentanyl comes into the united dates, smuggled in trucks and cars, coming across ports of entry. that's what the department of homeland security has identified. >> to be even clearer, what would your counter drug efforts be to be even more successful if we had complete control of our southern border? >> if we had the x-ray machines

and other investigative devices necessary to detect fentanyl as it comes across the border, absolutely. cut off that flow. that would vastly decrease. there will be other ways that people will try to get it in. through the mail and shipping, et cetera. but if we can cut off fentanyl crossing the border using these new technologies, that would make an enormous dent in the dangerous poison that is flooding our city. >> last week, we had the fbi director wray sitting in the seat you now occupy. he noted, he wished there was more cooperation from mexico about drug traffic. from a departmentwide counter drug perspective, what is the level of cooperation that we are receiving one not from mexico? >> i would echo what the director said. i wish there was more cooperation. we are getting cooperation.

we have had extraditions. they have destroyed some labs. they have reduced precursors coming into the country. but we need much more cooperation. >> as i understand it, the current mexican government has severely constrained the doj's ability to work alongside their mexican counterparts to disrupt the cartels. what does the department and this administration do to restore full law enforcement partnerships with mexican partners? >> the fbi, i think, as the director testified, has been successful in setting up some vetted teams. i've personally gone to mexico to speak with the attorney general, to re-up the degree of cooperation that previously existed with the dea. i would say i've not been completely successful in that

effort yet, but i'm persistent and i will not give up until cooperation with the dea is as wholesome as possible. >> they are based on the lack of a border patrol. he said that the mexican government really is complicit with the cartels. would you say that? >> i don't want to comment on that specifically. the cartels are enormously profitable. they had more money than some nationstates, and there are places in mexico where it's difficult to deal with the cartels. i will say that when mexican law enforcement, particularly the naval forces, the marines, the army have gone to arrest people that we extradited. this is commanding an enormous

loss for them, as well. i called the secretary of the navy there to give condolences for the death of marines in connection to an arrest. they have a very difficult job as we do. >> thank you, mr. chairman. attorney general garland, it did not escape my notice that you commented on crime statistics a little bit in your opening statement, correct? >> yes. >> and we keep track of crime statistics in the united states. not just federal crimes but state and local crimes, we keep track of violent crimes, we keep track of crimes against property. am i correct in that? >> yes. that is what the fbi does with crime reports. >> you said homicides dropped more last year than any other year in the last 30 years, is that right? >> that's right.

>> it is not just limited to a drop in homicide, though is it, attorney general garland? >> no, the fbi shows the decrease in violent crime across the board, as well. >> and it's not just limited to a decrease in violent crime. yesterday a reputable analytics company came out with a report that reviewed all of the national information on crime, and if you separate out violent crime versus property crime, take violent crime. we noted that violent crime is down a considerable amount including murder, down. manslaughter, down. rape, down. robbery, down. aggravated assault, down. all of them down a considerable amount. with property crime with the exception of motor vehicle theft, burglary down. larceny and theft are down.

all of these down a considerable amount. my stating that correctly, attorney general garland? >> you are. obviously, there's difference in different places in the countries. some have gone up and some have gone down. those are overall numbers. i also want to stay i think i understated the success on homicide. it's actually the largest reduction in 50 years. >> it's done more than any other year in the last 50 years? >> right. i think i said for -- 30, but 50. >> thank you, and thank you for the good, hard work. solid police work and solid prosecutorial work. done not only by the department of justice, but also by the state and local police and prosecutors. that's who deserves the credit for this, isn't it? >> they're the ones who deserve the credit. we support them, we help them,

we deal with the most difficult times. we provide them with technological support, but the people who are actually face-to- face with violent crime and their communities are the state and local police and law enforcement. >> you are here today before the appropriations panel, and we are the ones that fund your efforts. one of the most important areas that i look into is the retiring grants. as i mentioned in my opening statement, the byrne justice assistance grant. i've been very proud to bring grants home in both of those areas to fund local police and also to fund efforts by our local district attorneys. these are the ones that deserve the credit for the huge drop in crime over the last year, aren't they? >> i'd quite agree with that, yes. >> and don't let me put words in your mouth, attorney general. what else -- who else deserves the credit for the big drop in

crime that america has experienced? >> we know -- because we've had experience over decades now with the strategies for reducing violent crime, that the strategies from a federal point of view require kind of cooperation and non-silo and that the other chairman was speaking about from all of our agencies. then. in joint task forces with state and local law enforcement who are enormous force multipliers for the department. attorneys offices who reach out to communities. our grant programs support community violence interrupters to go out into communities and prevent the crime from happening in the first place, who are willing to meet with potentially violent people and talk them down.

so the importance of our grants to local communities to enhance good relationships between the police and the communities. but because we don't get good policing and effective policing unless the community trust the police. it's a combination across the board of federal law enforcement and local law enforcement, community engagement. >> that is well said. i want to focus on hiring of attorneys to go into prosecution work. attorney general, what is the department of justice doing right now to prioritize creating efficiencies in its hiring, and reducing the time to hire so that we have enough attorneys working for the department of justice and in prosecution generally? >> with respect to law enforcement, a reduction in time to hire is a significant issue with respect to retention, promotion, recruitment and law enforcement.

sometimes both federal law enforcement and state and local law enforcement takes so long to hire the person. they go through the whole background and vetting process. the person already accepts another job before we can finish the process or before state and local can. so we have created a playbook for state and local law enforcement to increase and streamline that process of course, we are looking internally to do the same thing. >> my time has expired, attorney general. and i will yield back, mr. chairman. >> mr. garcia. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you, attorney general garland for being here today. i view these annual preparation hearings is similar to an annual investor brief. we get to talk to you about what's going on in the organization. the money you are asking for

past performance, the path forward. i don't think most americans know what the department of justice does. i don't think most americans know if the attorney general does. i want on your website and just printed out the mission statement. the mission statement of the department of justice is to uphold the rule of law and keep our country safe, and to protect civil rights. pretty straightforward, pretty simple. you have been in office 2021. you report directly to the president. and you know your mission. for your investors, the american taxpayers, how would you rate your performance over the last three years relative to that mission? >> well i would grade the work of our -- >> i am talking about you, attorney general. with all due respect to you and your team, i have all the respect in the world for the agents in the field. they're doing god's work on a daily basis. so this line of questioning is specifically about you as someone who is on the cabinet, reports directly to the president during a period of record high crime rates. before my colleagues across the aisle get offended, i am not

talking about the agents in the field. i think they're doing god's work and i think they're doing a plus with the resources they are given and the policies they are working under. i'm asking you how would you rate yourself as attorney general of the united states? >> you asked about violent crime rate i think with the attorney general does with respect to violent crime is set forth a strategy for fighting violent crime and ensures that it's carried out throughout the department and throughout the country. it's what i did almost immediately after i came into office. >> i do not mean to cut you off but we are short on time. i'm just asking for a grade. a through f. >> i will give myself an a, but with room for improvement. >> okay. let me explain to you why i would give you an f. and we just heard why mr. cartwright from pennsylvania was setting the decline in crime nationwide. your mission is to uphold the rule of law. crossing the border is a crime. it is illegal for penal card

usc 1325. crossing international borders a crime. 7.5 million people under your tenure who have come across the border. when you say there is a decline in homicide by about 20%. a historic decline in homicide and 30 or 50 years, whatever the number is, does that include the 75,000 people who were killed by fentanyl or poisoned by fentanyl, by in many cases, dealers who actually knew that they were selling fentanyl, and the victims did not. does that decline in homicide of 20% include the 75,000 fentanyl poisonings? >> i'm sure that it does not include the fentanyl poisoning. >> those were american lives lost who were killed by illicit drug dealers for the most part. why is that not -- >> they do pursue fentanyl traffickers, including the sale of even small amounts where we can establish that the trafficker is the one who caused the death. >> do you charge them with homicide when that's the case? >> there is an aquatics statute

that includes a sentencing enhancement for death. we do not prosecute homicides. those are state laws. >> i just want to be clear when we are putting the capon and saying there is a 20% reduction in homicide, we are not counting the 75,000 americans that have been killed by the drug overdose each year. the second metric of keeping our country safe, we talk about the death to america chanting in some of our cities. we heard raised testimony last year that one of the most precarious positions we've been in over the last several decades. 10,000 people entering the border a day illegally. a 7000% increase in chinese immigrants coming across the border illegally. 10,000 people per day, and across the borders. that's about a 40% increase since your watch began in fy '21. eight in 10 americans feel less secure than they did just three

or four years ago, per the pew research center. so your assessment of yourself -- i think someone who is in your position, literally reports directly to the president, an attribute of a leader in that position has to be self-aware. they have to have the courage to tell the boss that the boss is screwing up. especially when it's leading to a loss of life at a level that's unprecedented. and i think you are giving yourself an a and under the circumstances, demonstrating a lack of self-awareness is frankly. i think you've earned an f. i think you need to talk to your boss and tell him that the policies are killing us. not the lack of money. i respect the $37 billion investment request year. if i was in charge, i would give you more. but it is the policies that are broken. with that, i'm out of time. i'm happy to discuss more things, but i will wait for the second round to talk about the treatment of law and the

application of law to certain demographics. and i yelled back. thank you, mr. chairman. >> and i would like to give the attorney general a response at what he just heard. >> i did not hear a question in that at all and i've disagreed with almost everything you've said. i agree that the border responsibility, you're talking to the wrong department. the department of homeland security is the department responsible for inventing things from coming across the border. the secretary and president of homeland security have proposed to build a bipartisan border to decrease the number of people aiming across and increase money spent to prevent fentanyl from a coming across the border. that would be my view in that respect. >> thank you. i will just editorialize this. the second area i've been at.

the director of the fbi and attorney general have been personally attacked. i want to underscore there was a bipartisan deal on the table. as i understand the former president persuaded people not to participate in that because he did not want to political win. he cared about politics over the safety of american people. i'm tired of listening to these attacks when they can be addressed. having said that, mr. attorney general, thank you for taking the time to be with us today and thank you for your long service to the country. i want to begin by thanking your staff and you for having provided detailed feedback on a bill which i have reintroduced, the preventing defects of intimate images act. this is to prohibit the disclosure of nonconsensual defect pornography. obviously a growing and alarming problem in the united states. 96% of all defects involved pornography on the internet. and as i work to pass this legislation into law, i hope i can continue the lines of

communication with you and your department. i want to thank you for that. >> has been a lot from the special counsel report released back in february this year. i'm not asking you to comment on the substantive report which has been commented on publicly but as a member of the common -- cabinet in regular contact with the president, would you like to comment on president biden's fitness generally? >> i will start by thanking you for recognizing that i can't and won't comment about the special counsel's report at all but if you are asking me about my own observations as a member of the national security council and a member of the president's cabinet, i have complete confidence in the president. i have watched him expertly guide meetings of staff and cabinet members on issues of foreign affairs and military strategy and policy in the incredibly complex world in which we now face and in which

he has been decisive in instructions to the staff. decisive in making the decisions necessary to protect the country. the domestic policy discussions. these are integrated complicated questions that he has guided all of us through in order to reach results that are helpful and important and beneficial to the american people. i could not have more confidence in the president. >> thank you, sir. i have a number of questions that i may submit in writing. one thing that i did want to get some initial comments -- you mentioned in your testimony, in addition my role, i am proud to serving as a democrat on the housing committee which has

jurisdiction over federal election reforms. in july, they launched a task force to address rising threats against election workers and officials. in addition to threats of violence and intimidation, our country's election workers face new and unique pressures driven by the rapid spread of misinformation by extremists with less than eight months before the general election. can you provide an update on the activities of the task force on the department plans to ensure election workers are protected from threats? >> yes, as i said in my opening remarks, threats to election workers, particularly volunteers but also secretaries of straight -- state and the appointed administrators, this is a real threat to our democracy to have the people running our elections afraid to continue their work. we have personally spoken to all of our u.s. attorneys in video and in person during conferences. the fbi has agents devoted to this issue. we have this task force that you are talking about.

we have prosecuted around 20 cases now. many of which have yielded significant sentences. and we have investigated many, many more and disrupted other kinds of threats. we are completely ceased with the importance of preventing, deterring, disrupting threat against our election workers. >> thank you, sir. i yelled back. >> thank you, german rogers. >> attorney general garland, as i understand, the hatch act credits employees from lobbying legislation while on the job. last week when they were considering reauthorization of the foreign intelligence surveillance act, did you or members of your office make phone calls to members to

encourage the government to obtain a warrant before spying on americans? a yes or no will six -- suffice. >>. presents -- prevents member of the administration speaking about the effect of legislation like you are asking me today. >> if we ask that's one thing. if we don't asking you reach out, that's another. >> is not violating the law of any kind. >> will you answer my question? >> i discussed the vital united states interest with members -- >> how many members did you call? >> i'm not going to get into my conversations with members. >> cannot asking, but how many members did you call? >> i'm not answering the question but -- >> okay. all right. on march 30, 2024, you make comments regarding elections and security laws passed by various states.

specifically acclaimed democracy is under attack by discriminatory, burdensome and unnecessary restrictions on access to the ballot. do you believe requiring an i.d. to vote in a federal election is discriminatory? yes or no? just yes or no -- >> i spoke at the iconic church from which the voting rights begin. the answer is the supreme court's decision sets undue burdens on voting rights caused by voter ids can be unconstitutional. >> what? >> that's right. that's what -- >> the voter i.d. can be unconstitutional? >> it can be, depending on the burdensome and discriminatory way. >> you think it's important to positively identify every voter to make sure they are a legal voter, or as you called it illegitimate voter?

>> you have to be a united states citizen and meet the qualifications to be a voter. it's important that only those people vote. >> so how do you prove that? how do you prove what a person is if you don't require i.d.? the require i.d. to get on an airplane. they will not let you on an airplane -- >> i have voted every year of my entire life and i've never been asked to show identification. >> i've always been asked to show identification. >> somehow the democracy has gone on without it. >> do you believe that illegal aliens residing in the united states should be allowed to vote in federal elections yes or no? >> no. >> great. we agree on something. other than u.s. citizens, are there any other legitimate voters? >> you must be a u.s. citizen to vote. >> okay, great. all right. i ask unanimous consent to add this to the record, mr. chairman. thank you, sir. this is a poster found outside the city, posted around the

migrant camps. it is a poster from the immigrant aid society. and this particular poster says it's a six unit con -- complex that is the home. at the bottom it says reminder to vote for president biden when you are in the united states. when another year of your mandate to stay open. that's what this poster says. is the department of justice concerned about illegal aliens voting in federal elections? >> the department of justice is concerned about any illegalities with respect to voting. i've never seen that poster, never heard of that poster. that's the first time i've heard of anybody mentioning that poster. l? mr. garland: anybody violates the voting laws, federal voting laws, we will investigate and prosecute as appropriate. mr. clyde: that's good to hear. i appreciate that.

with the additional money you asked for the civil rights divisi appropriate. >> i hope you prosecute illegal voting. last are you promised to provide the prosecution of crime statistics for the city of washington dc for the last five years. a question i asked you, i have not received it. i'm asking you today, do you commit to provide these statistics prosecution of crime statistics for the city of washington, d.c., will you provide these in the let --'s next 30 days. >> i do not know what the problem is in respect to providing those? >> i appreciate your commitment. my time has expired. i yield back. mr. rogers: the cl

be in order. mr. rogers: the cl >> >> free julian assange. free julian assange. >> the disruptive from our audience is in violation of rules. we will remove protesters from the room. we will restore order. >> i thank you attorney general garland for appearing here today. thank you for your patience as you deal with this committee. i'm cochair of the bipartisan second task -- second chance

task force. we are concerned about staffing shortages. at the bop. it is funded at 93%, only staffed at 86%. what is happening, education, a wraparound service of mental health and et cetera, could improve the outcomes for job training to not get left behind. we are in agreement on that. we would like to figure out how to implement the bipartisan first of stop act. we have to have the staff it can be -- can you talk about what it does for the lousy outcomes were we cannot cut the prison budget because we do not give folks a second chance to succeed? >> i think the first stuff was extremely important. they focused on inmates. reduces -- after people leave.

it can reduce recidivism after entropy to drive some the firelight crime rate. makes every effort to ensure the staffing shortages you are referring to do not impact the programming as well as the assisted treatment programming. to be frank, if you're asking me what we need most in order to protect the ability to have full staffing at the bureau prisons, we need the money for hiring and retention. being a correctional officer or being a first step administrator, these are dangerous jobs. they have not been kept up over decades. where there are adjoining state

and local of facilities, they pay more money. if you're asking for the one thing that will give us a better chance here for the first stop, it would be to give us the money we are requesting. $205.4 million for hiring retention. >> the dollars we give you, the proper amount of money will save tens of millions more down the line by cutting recidivism? >> i think the money that we have would buy more incentives for people to stay on the job in the bureau prisons, and means the chance for reducing recidivism will decrease. >> that sounds like a smart investment. >> 70% of bop inmates do not have a photo id and they cannot secure jobs, housing, bank accounts, et cetera. the bureau is addressing this by providing ids now. we have a bipartisan bill. they

support this effort at the bop by ensuring new ids to fill all requirements and directs the bop to work with the states with a one-on-one exchange to work with the states to move the folks into getting the new id cards and successfully being able to exchange that for state id cards. we would appreciate your help in moving the bill forward. if it makes sense to you. >> we would be happy to give technical assistance. our staff may have already consulted on this. we would be happy to give technical assistance. the bop has implemented its own release id program in october of 2023. they are on track to have it by the spring. >> the da extended flexibilities for prescribing controlled medications through december

2024. there is not a revised proposed rule where many patients are at risk of losing access to prescriptions needed for mental health. substance abuse disorders. my colleagues and i expressed concerns about the rose dea rule that would have limited patient access and encourages evidence-based approach to make permanent use of audiovisual telehealth technology for prescribing. this is crucial to reach these patient populations, including homeless, rule, tribal. the follow-up to that letter would be introduced the treats act, it allows medication for opioid disorder to prescribed the medicine. what is the department of justice to ensure access for the necessary substance abuse

disorder treatment, and how is it supported in your budget request? >> as you noted, the da extended the current flexibilities until december 31st of this year. they have issued a proposed rule which would allow authorized providers to prescribed medicines for opioid use disorder via telehealth medicine. they are working for the final rule by the fall of this year. >> thank you very much. quickly, restrictive housing known as solitary confinement. this is used far too often. we believe the bop has been dragging its feet for this area of restrictive housing for the past 10 years. we have conducted studies in task force to improve restrictive housing. we have failed to make any progress. what step the department of justice and bop take together

to make this more effective and approve restrictive houses -- housing policy be >> the new director is committed to what you are talking about. the bop recently published a proposed rule undisciplined designed to reduce the use of the restrictive housing. the segregation. the bop are trying to hire more colleges -- psychologist to help reduce the need for restrictive housing. >> thank you. i yield back. >> if you would please move the microphone closer to you? i'm having trouble hearing. >> i cannot move the microphone. >> thank you mr. attorney general for being here. i listened with interest to your opening statement. i have to say that i am concerned that your actions are

speaking louder than your words, especially when you say there is not one set of laws for democrats and another for republicans. my constituents and many americans are watching your actions, which are speaking louder than your words when it comes to -- there is a crisis of confidence in this country in your department. is being created by the dual treatment. american citizens, depending on their viewpoints or their political positions or the political offices. as your department is currently prosecuting a former president for handling less my documents, your office and you personally declined to take action against president biden for his handling of ossified decadence. i appreciate you making the report of robert hur public which was done historically with every other special counsel.

did you review the report prior to its release? >> before i release it? yes. >> did you approve of the recommendation because you have it within your power to prosecute, correct? >> i will not comment on the report. i promised i would release it, i did. the report speaks for itself as special counsel sat for five hours of testimony. subject to any questions about the results he reached could have been asked >> you will not see if you concur with the conclusion? >> i will say at the time it was released, i will not editorialize that. it's not appropriate. >> you won't agree that biden would have come across as a sympathetic well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory? >> i said before and it will again, as respect for the

report, it is improper for the attorney general to -- i take that separately from the question you are asking. you're asking about my own observations about the president? >> you testified to the and i heard you the first time. have you ever seen evidence of impairment? >> i testified and i will repeat again --? that's different than my caution. >> i have seen the president effectively guide the members of the department of his cabinet and his military was >> you will not say you have never seen any impairment? >> the president has no impairment. >> you have never seen any? >> i do not know how many ways to say this? i have complete confidence in the present and i reject your characterization. >> let's talk about the audio recordings of special counsel her.

you are in possession? has the white house been provided access to those recordings? >> i do not know what he has been provided but i would guess the answer is yes. >> how many times that the judiciary committee ask for those recordings? >> i know they have asked and we sent a letter explaining the position with respect to the recordings. we provided transcripts of the recordings. robert hur testified about his observations during his interviews. these are interviews of the witness. a long-standing practice of the justice department to keep these documents confidential in order to not shield future -- this is the witness. sometimes we do and sometimes

we don't. as you well know, there are privileges to national security and other information or to address in those recordings and the interviews, the transcripts themselves had to be cleared for the process. you know that because we said that in the letter to the committee. >> and mike -- you said following the court's rulings, it could be an undue burden. do you know often example, is there any case in which you would consider a photo id to not be an undue burden? if it is a free id? >> you have a good example. that was the supreme court case, free id is completely available