Dershowitz asserts that Merrick Garland's selection of David Weiss as the special counsel runs afoul of federal law, as the law dictates that the appointment should come from an individual unaffiliated with the United States government.
From Slay News:
Dershowitz writes: “When Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that he was appointing David Weiss as special counsel, he failed to mention § 600.3(c) of the Code of Federal Regulations entitled ‘Qualifications of the Special Counsel.’
“These qualifications include the following: ‘The special counsel shall be selected from outside the United States government.’
“This requirement is the law,” Dershowitz notes.
“The regulations were authorized by Congress under 5 U.S.C. 301, 509, 510, 515-519.
“The attorney general is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States.
“It is certainly expected that he would obey the law in its entirety.
“If he feels that somehow there is an applicable exception to this requirement, he is obliged to explain why.
“Particularly when the special counsel is appointed to investigate the son of the incumbent president, who appointed Garland, every T should be crossed and every I should be dotted.
“Here we have what appears to be a clear rule using the word ‘shall’ rather than a more permissive word such as ‘may.’
“The regulation on its face seems mandatory, and not advisory. If it is not, why not?
“There are good reasons for this requirement,” he added.
“Special counsel is supposed to be independent of the current government, not an employee who serves as U.S. Attorney for Delaware and can be fired from that job by the president.”
“Garland’s defenders argue that he may have merely skirted, rather than violated, the law because the appointment was made under his general authority and not expressly under the relevant regulations.
Dershowitz further comments that while Democrats often emphasize the principle of "no one is above the law," they've oddly refrained from addressing Garland's self-elevation above the law in this appointment.
However, this conduct doesn't come as a major surprise. Democrats appear to prioritize fairness and the law primarily when it aligns with their political objectives. And even in such cases, they're significantly stretching the boundaries of legality to carry out their own politcal agendas.
