Congressman Cohen Asks Attorney General Garland to Reconsider Appeal of Trump Obstruction Memo Case

MEMPHIS – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, today wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland to reiterate his position that the Department of Justice should comply with a District Court order and release a Barr Justice Department memorandum explaining its decision not to pursue obstruction of justice charges against former President Donald Trump.

Congressman Cohen made a similar request to the Attorney General in a May 5 letter after reading the ruling by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordering the memo released. The Department of Justice released a redacted version of the memorandum on Tuesday.

Today's letter to Garland reads in part:

"You now have the difficult job of restoring the Department and rebuilding trust in the institutions of justice. That work requires transparency. I urge you to reconsider the Department's position in CREW v. DOJ and release the unredacted memorandum analyzing whether to indict Donald Trump for the conduct described in Volume II of Special Counsel Mueller's investigation.

"Good governance requires the release of the memorandum. I also encourage you to release evidence collected by the Special Counsel and the full extent of the Department's attempts to insulate President Trump from criminal culpability.  The public has a compelling interest in understanding what the Department did and how decisions were made. The conduct described in the Special Counsel's report goes to the heart of our democracy. Trump acted as though he was above the law, and the Department of Justice worked to ensure that was the case. Open transparency will help restore confidence in the Department."

See the entire letter here.