Donald Trump Jr. criticized Richard Pilger, the DOJ’s top election crimes prosecutor, after he resigns in protest following Attorney General William Barr’s authorization of federal prosecutors to investigate voting irregularities in this year’s presidential election.
Trump Jr. alleged that Pilger was a member of the “deep state.”
The President’s son seemed particularly irked at the notion that a voter fraud investigator would be upset at the idea of people actually investigating voter fraud.
“Wait. Seriously? Isn’t this the guy who was involved with the IRS and Lois Lerner in targeting conservatives and the Tea Party?” Trump Jr. tweeted.
“Maybe that’s why he hasn’t done s**t at DOJ.”
Wait. Seriously? Isn’t this the guy who was involved with the IRS and Lois Lerner in targeting conservatives and the Tea Party? Maybe that’s why he hasn’t done shit at DOJ. #deepstate
Head of DOJ election crimes unit RESIGNS in protest at Bill Barr https://t.co/2zMvC21SO6
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 10, 2020
RELATED: AG William Barr Authorizes DOJ To Investigate Voting Irregularities
DOJ Voter Fraud Investigator Richard Pilger Resigns In Protest
In a memo issued on Monday, Barr authorized an investigation into “substantial allegations” of voting irregularities before the 2020 presidential election is certified.
The memo does not indicate there has been evidence of widespread problems but encourages pursuit “if there are clear and apparently-credible allegations of irregularities” that “could potentially impact the outcome of a federal election in an individual State.”
Pilger, in apparent disgust, stepped down from his post “within hours” according to the New York Times.
Today:
2:30pm: Bill Barr meets with @senatemajldr.
3:23pm: @senatemajldr defends Trump in Senate speech.
7pm: Barr authorizes DOJ to investigate election fraud.
8pm: Obama lackey Richard Pilger resigns from DOJ election crimes job.
Maybe the GOP decided to fight.
— Emerald Robinson ✝️ (@EmeraldRobinson) November 10, 2020
“Having familiarized myself with the new policy and its ramifications,” Pilger wrote, “I must regretfully resign from my role as director of the Election Crimes Branch.”
He went on to write that Barr has ushered in “an important new policy abrogating the forty-year-old Non-Interference-Policy for ballot fraud investigations in the period prior to elections becoming certified and uncontested.”
Perhaps ‘non-interference’ in elections from the voter fraud division of the DOJ isn’t really the best policy? Perhaps that’s why we’re staring at so many questions in so many states?
Attorney General Barr said that while “most allegations” of voter fraud are not significant enough to affect election results, “that is not always the case.”
But he also said any investigations should avoid focus on “specious, speculative, fanciful or far-fetched claims.”
Why would Pilger object to this?
Thus far, claims of widespread election fraud have gone unproven. Could authorizing investigations, as Barr has done, change that?
Katie Benner of the NYT fails to google Richard Pilger before reporting on him.
Pro tip: google “Lois Lerner, Richard Pilger, IRS, Conservatives” https://t.co/u0ZQiMJlYZ
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) November 10, 2020
RELATED: Trump Will Continue Rallies, Plans To Brandish Obituaries Of People Who Allegedly Voted
Pilger and His Links to Lois Lerner’s IRS Scandal
Trump Jr. asked followers on social media if Pilger is the same guy “who was involved with the IRS and Lois Lerner in targeting conservatives and the Tea Party.”
Indeed, Pilger was involved in discussions of whether conservative groups could be prosecuted for misleading the IRS about their political activities.
The Wall Street Journal described him as “a foot on the gas pedal during the IRS’s increased screening of conservative 501(c) groups.”
Guess who was in charge of voter fraud investigations at DOJ? Richard Pilger.
Same hack who colluded with Lois Lerner under Obama to target conservatives and tea party through the IRS! When asked to look into fraud now, he resigned!
I’m so shocked?https://t.co/tSdsFfSGJo
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 10, 2020
He met with Lerner in October of 2010 to explore being “more vigilant to the opportunities from more crime” in the area of tax-exempt organizations.
This was after a Cincinnati-based IRS unit under Lerner’s direction had already begun searching for tax-exemption requests involving the words “Tea Party” and other “political sounding names.”
Odd that Pilger, who will be hailed as an exceptional example of morals and decency by the media in the coming days, didn’t have the fortitude to resign from his position in protest at the time.
