House Republican leaders involved in the impeachment inquiry into President Biden have sent letters to the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service regarding the alleged whistleblower retaliation against two IRS agents who had accused the agencies of mishandling a five-year investigation into Hunter Biden. IRS supervisory special agent Gary Shapley and special agent Joseph Ziegler had made protected disclosures to Congress last year about prosecutors covering up evidence gathered during the Hunter Biden probe.
The House Republicans demanded answers from Attorney General Merrick Garland, IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel, and special counsel David Weiss about potential federal investigations into the whistleblowers. They also questioned how the DOJ and IRS have been involved in an alleged intimidation campaign led by Hunter Biden’s defense attorney, Abbe Lowell, who had accused the whistleblowers of misconduct. Lowell had also called for an investigation into the whistleblowers’ conduct in earlier court filings.
Shapley and Ziegler testified to Congress last year that they were blocked from pursuing lines of questioning related to Joe Biden and tipped off Hunter Biden’s attorneys about a planned search of his storage locker. They also claimed that the Justice Department sabotaged a planned in-person interview of Hunter Biden in late 2020. These allegations of political interference have led to an impeachment inquiry into President Biden by House Republicans.
Hunter Biden initially entered into a probation-only plea agreement with Weiss’ office for alleged tax and gun crimes, but the deal was walked away from last July due to concerns that it would not shield him from future prosecutions. Following the collapse of the plea deal, Hunter Biden was indicted on multiple counts related to tax evasion and lying about his crack cocaine use on a background check form by Weiss’ office. Lowell filed motions to dismiss the case, arguing that the prosecution was selective and vindictive, but those motions were rejected by a judge.
Hunter Biden is scheduled to stand trial on June 20 in the tax case and on June 3 on the gun charges. The special counsel’s office declined to comment on the matter, while representatives for the DOJ and IRS did not immediately respond to requests for comments on the situation. The impeachment inquiry into President Biden, spurred by the allegations of whistleblower retaliation and political interference in the investigation into Hunter Biden, continues to unfold, with Republican leaders seeking further information and transparency from the involved agencies.
