Presidents have the responsibility to supervise and direct the operations of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and historically have done so, Mark Paoletta said Thursday.
Paoletta, a former Trump administration official and Senior Fellow at the Center for Renewing America, responded to election night comments from a CNN personality citing the Left’s conventional wisdom that the DOJ somehow has historically operated independent of presidential oversight.
He said the “CNN reporter is wrong both constitutionally and historically,” adding that the “Constitution vests our ELECTED President with ALL executive power, including DOJ. He has the duty to supervise DOJ, including, if necessary, on specific cases.
“Our system does not permit an unaccountable agency.”
He cited Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion in the United States v. Trump, which read “the Constitution vests the entirety of the executive power in the President.”
Paoletta provided a compelling history lesson of presidents going back to George Washington:
There are many examples going back to our Founding, with George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson vigorously directing prosecutors to initiate or drop specific cases. In recent times (after Nixon), there are many examples, such as Reagan directing DOJ to drop an antitrust prosecution against a British airline (over DOJ’s objection), and George H.W. Bush directing DOJ to move into overdrive to bring federal civil rights criminal charges against LAPD officers in Rodney King incident.
The President has a duty to supervise the types of cases DOJ should focus on and can intervene to direct DOJ on specific cases. He is the duly elected chief executive and he has every right to make sure the executive branch, including the DOJ, is implementing his agenda.
For example, the President could direct DOJ to significantly increase resources to prosecute criminals at the highest charging level and to seek maximum sentences, devote maximum resources to deporting illegal aliens, act against sanctuary cities who defy and obstruct federal law enforcement efforts, and seek restoration of death penalty in all possible cases for horrific crimes, including for drug trafficking and child molestation and rape.
Democrats’ false narrative of a historical separation between presidents and their Departments of Justice has been convenient through recent administrations.
Barack Obama portrayed himself as a moderate while using his Attorney General Eric Holder as a partisan attack dog. Democrats sought to neutralize Trump’s first Department of Justice as they investigated Trump for the now-debunked Russian collusion hoax. In the Joe Biden administration, Democrats tried to shield Biden from responsibility for DOJ’s additional investigations into Trump – Biden’s rival until he was forced off the ticket in July.
Paoletta argued Trump should return to a more historical and appropriate relationship between presidents and their DOJ, and would do so responsibly.
“President Trump will not use the DOJ for political purposes, that is to go after individuals simply because they are political opponents,” he said. “But just because you are a political opponent does not give you get a free pass if you have violated the law.”
He added, “In contrast, Democrats went after President Trump solely to punish him because he was a political opponent. They invented crimes, twisted statutes, abused their offices and power, all to stop him and destroy him. Thanks to President Trump’s fortitude and perseverance, they failed.”
Paoletta believes Trump has a mandate to use the DOJ to carry out the agenda he campaigned on.
“The President should supervise and direct the DOJ to implement his agenda, which was voted on and supported by a landslide majority of the American people on November 5th,” he said.
He closed with an ironic observation by quoting Biden’s own declaration, “No one is above the law.”
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.