Quick Hit:

In an op-ed published Thursday, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz slammed Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice for holding a "pep rally" in the wake of President Donald Trump's debate win. Gaetz argues that Garland’s actions, following Trump's pointed criticism of the DOJ’s weaponization, highlight the Biden-Harris administration’s hypocrisy.

Key Details:

• Gaetz claims Trump "clearly won" the debate exchange with Harris, who failed to respond to Trump’s accusations of DOJ weaponization. Instead of addressing immigration, Harris "brought up that Trump has been prosecuted," a non-answer that Gaetz says only bolstered Trump’s claims.

• The Florida congressman criticized the DOJ under Garland, suggesting it selectively prosecutes political opponents. Gaetz noted that DOJ employees face retaliation if they follow protocol and expose misconduct, citing cases such as Marcus Allen and Stephen Friend.

• Gaetz argued that Harris and Garland’s DOJ are responsible for the border crisis, election issues, and rising crime. He pointed to Harris’s "soft-on-crime policies" as detrimental to swing states like Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Wisconsin.

Diving Deeper:

In a sharply worded op-ed published Thursday by RealClearPolitics, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz targeted Attorney General Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice, accusing the Biden-Harris administration of politicizing the justice system. Gaetz took particular aim at Garland’s "pep rally" for DOJ employees, writing that it was an effort to "clean up" Kamala Harris’s poor debate performance against Donald Trump. Gaetz wrote, "Trump clearly won that exchange," referring to a moment during the debate when Trump took aim at the DOJ’s weaponization, while Harris failed to mount a meaningful defense.

Gaetz argued that the Biden-Harris DOJ has been engaging in partisan activities, highlighting how the DOJ under Garland has been accused of treating Trump and his allies harshly while turning a blind eye to transgressions involving Joe Biden or Kamala Harris. Gaetz criticized the selective enforcement of justice, writing, "You might be asked to violate Departmental Protocol and do a pre-dawn raid of a former President but turn a blind eye to a legally worse situation involving Joe and classified documents in his garage." He also pointed to whistleblowers like Marcus Allen and Stephen Friend, who faced retaliation under Garland for exposing internal misconduct.

The congressman didn’t limit his critique to the DOJ, taking direct shots at Harris herself. Gaetz argued that the vice president’s policies, particularly her "soft-on-crime" approach from California, have caused damage nationwide. "Harris and the current administration are responsible for the tragedies on the border every day," Gaetz wrote, adding that these policies are hitting rural swing states like Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Wisconsin especially hard. He also highlighted that Harris’s DOJ has failed to investigate election issues, accusing Garland of "sending letters to county clerks...warning them of prosecution if they get too aggressive in protecting our elections."