'Could you swing by Georgia?': AG's surprise Ukraine trip raises eyebrows about his focus on Donald Trump
United States Attorney General Merrick Garland made an unannounced trip to Ukraine on Tuesday to assist in the country's investigation into war crimes committed by Russian President Vladimir Putin's military forces.
\u201cAttorney General Merrick B. Garland Visits Ukraine, Reaffirms U.S. Commitment to Help Identify, Apprehend, and Prosecute Individuals Involved in War Crimes and Atrocities\n\nhttps://t.co/igelMcE3qE\u201d— Justice Department (@Justice Department) 1655827946
"There is no hiding place for war criminals," Garland said at a press conference alongside his Ukrainian counterpart, Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova, as reported by Yahoo News. “Working alongside our domestic and international partners, the Justice Department will be relentless in our efforts to hold accountable every person complicit in the commission of war crimes, torture, and other grave violations during the unprovoked conflict in Ukraine."
Garland revealed that he went to "express the unwavering support of the United States to the people of Ukraine amidst the unprovoked and unjust Russian invasion. I'm here to continue our discussions between myself and the prosecutor general about the actions the United States is taking in assisting the Ukrainian authorities in holding accountable those responsible for the atrocities and the war crimes that our world has seen."
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Garland added that "the United States is sending an unmistakable message. There is no place to hide. We and our partners will pursue every avenue available to ensure that those who are responsible for these atrocities are held accountable."
Watch below via Justice Department Public Affairs Director Anthony Coley:
\u201cIn unannounced trip, Attorney General Merrick Garland Visits Ukraine, Reaffirms U.S. Commitment to Help Identify, Apprehend, and Prosecute Individuals Involved in War Crimes and Atrocities\u201d— Anthony Coley (@Anthony Coley) 1655818337
While Garland's actions are widely seen as commendable and necessary, his visit to Ukraine is prompting questions over whether he is sufficiently focused on potentially prosecuting former President Donald Trump and his associates for trying to steal the 2020 election and overthrow the federal government.
\u201cAs lovely as this gesture maybe, and and as awful as ongoing Russian crimes in Ukraine are, pretty sure AG Garland\u2019s time would be best used focusing on the threat to democracy here at home. #justsayin\u201d— Mehdi Hasan (@Mehdi Hasan) 1655829990
\u201cAny time a US official shows support for Ukraine, it\u2019s a good thing.\n\nBut damn.\nYou\u2019d think Merrick Garland would be a little busy prosecuting those who attacked our own government and Democracy. Really.\u201d— Ana Navarro-C\u00e1rdenas (@Ana Navarro-C\u00e1rdenas) 1655819297
\u201cMerrick Garland is in Ukraine looking for war criminals. Yes, one can multi-task, yes, one can support, but I do hope we eventually get some cleaning up of criminals in our own backyard.\u201d— Don Lewis (@Don Lewis) 1655819174
\u201cMerrick Garland is so concerned with prosecuting Donald Trump, that he took a field trip to Ukraine at the worst goddamn time ever. Tell me again how \u201che\u2019s on top of it\u201d. @TheJusticeDept\u201d— Ty Webb \ud83c\udf08 \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Ty Webb \ud83c\udf08 \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1655825735
\u201c@B52Malmet @USATODAY Wonderful. Our democracy is holding on by a thread and Garland is in Ukraine. Someone tell him there are other ways to communicate other than physically be there. He needs to get home.\u201d— Barbara Malmet (@Barbara Malmet) 1655816693
\u201cSad that Merrick Garland is busy in Ukraine doing something that is not really his job, and is missing the January 6th committee hearing laying out devastating Trump crimes that Merrick Garland should have already addressed.\u201d— Cheri Jacobus (@Cheri Jacobus) 1655836909
\u201cDoesn't our attorney general have other fish to fry? Like, a fireman driving away from a burning building to put one out in the next town over. https://t.co/kL9A60sl6V\u201d— Nina Burleigh (@Nina Burleigh) 1655832664
\u201cDear Merrick Garland,\n\nI'm grateful to see you visiting the Ukraine today.\n\nCould you swing by Georgia on your way back and do some work on the Trump/Georgia case which is now (incredibly) ***17 months*** old\n\nhttps://t.co/E3vA9jhZGg via @Yahoo\u201d— Don Winslow (@Don Winslow) 1655831423
\u201cis there are any better illustration of the battle between the president and the house for messaging right now than counter-programming the j6 hearings with this ukraine stunt from merrick garland\u201d— Michael.eth (@Michael.eth) 1655819859
\u201cIs anyone else pissed off that Merrick Garland is appearing good on camera in Ukraine, smiling and acting like everything is all good? Or is it just me?\u201d— Ty Webb \ud83c\udf08 \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Ty Webb \ud83c\udf08 \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1655826247
\u201cMerrick Garland defending Ukraine's borders before America's.\u201d— Tim Meads (@Tim Meads) 1655832772
\u201cThis is very important because Putin commits war crimes every day. Genocide must be called out. But how will Garland watch today\u2019s 1/6 public hearing in Ukraine? Hopefully the time difference and streaming ability aren\u2019t obstacles. We need his focus on the war against democracy.\u201d— Barbara Malmet (@Barbara Malmet) 1655816693
\u201cMerrick Garland is over in Ukraine today. Maybe some of Zelensky\u2019s urgency and courage will rub off on him.\u201d— Jason Overstreet (@Jason Overstreet) 1655822866
