Attorney General Merrick Garland delivered remarks to Department of Justice staff and U.S. Attorneys on Thursday morning — a fiery speech, per CNN. 

Attorney General Merrick Garland is set to slam efforts to turn the Justice Department into a “political weapon” during a fiery speech Thursday morning to department staff and US attorneys from across the country, according to excerpts of his prepared remarks.

In a speech focused on protecting the longstanding norms of the Justice Department, Garland will decry the “escalation of attacks” against its career staff over the past several years through “conspiracy theories, dangerous falsehoods, efforts to bully and intimidate career public servants by repeatedly and publicly singling them out, and threats of actual violence,” according to the excerpts.

“It is dangerous to target and intimidate individual employees of this Department simply for doing their jobs,” he said from the DOJ headquarters in Washington. “And it is outrageous that you have to face these unfounded attacks because you are doing what is right and upholding the rule of law.”

The full remarks are excerpted in this DOJ tweet thread, but this is the one that caught my eye: 

"These attacks have come in the form of conspiracy theories, dangerous falsehoods, efforts to bully & intimidate career public servants by repeatedly & publicly singling them out, & threats of actual violence." - AG Garland

— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) September 12, 2024

"In addition to seeing how you have operated in the face of dangers like violent crime and terrorism, I have also seen how you have bravely carried on in the face of an unprecedented spike in threats targeting a range of public officials across the country.

"These attacks have come in the form of conspiracy theories, dangerous falsehoods, efforts to bully & intimidate career public servants by repeatedly & publicly singling them out, & threats of actual violence."

CNN, of course, was quick to connect the remarks to former President Donald Trump, noting:

The attorney general’s comments come as former President Donald Trump has claimed that the Justice Department has been weaponized against him amid his criminal prosecutions and suggested that he would politicize the department should he return to the Oval Office. Although neither the Republican nominee nor his allies are mentioned by name in the excerpts, Trump and his associates have publicly discussed plans to dismantle the department and its law enforcement components like the FBI, or to prosecute his political enemies.

(No reference to accusations by Hunter Biden or his legal team that the very same DOJ was pursuing a "show trial" by prosecuting the First Son for tax evasion and attempting to "dehumanize" him. Funny that.) 

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Here are some key moments from Garland's remarks:

MERRICK GARLAND:

"Federal prosecutors and agents may NEVER make a decision regarding an investigation or prosecution for the purpose of affecting any election or the purpose of giving an advantage or disadvantage to ANY candidate or political party!" pic.twitter.com/Y8qNNJGdam

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 12, 2024

"Federal prosecutors and agents may NEVER make a decision regarding an investigation or prosecution for the purpose of affecting any election or the purpose of giving an advantage or disadvantage to ANY candidate or political party!"

MERRICK GARLAND:

"There is not one rule for friends, and another for foes...one rule for Democrats, and another for Republicans..." pic.twitter.com/v6MqDUsGIy

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 12, 2024

"We must treat like cases alike. There is not one rule for friends, and another for foes; one rule for the powerful, and another for the powerless; one rule for the rich, and another for the poor; one rule for Democrats, and another for Republicans; or different rules depending on one's race or ethnicity. To the contrary, we have only one rule: We follow the facts and apply the law in a way that respects the Constitution and protects civil liberties."

MERRICK GARLAND:

"Our norms are a promise that we will not allow this nation to become a country where law enforcement is treated as an apparatus of politics."

Watch AG Garland put his hand over his heart as a thank you for the applause he gets. pic.twitter.com/LN3PniFPYs

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 12, 2024

"Our norms are a promise that we will not allow this nation to become a country where law enforcement is treated as an apparatus of politics."

Watch AG Garland put his hand over his heart as a thank you for the applause he gets.

I'd like to be reassured by Garland's remarks. I'd be lying if I said I am.