Weaponization of the Doj

Floor Speech

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Mr. PERRY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman of the House Freedom Caucus and the former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus for their comments.

I am happy to join in a colloquy with them over the abuses of power and the dangers of the abuse of power.

The Framers of the Constitution noted that it was the avarice of man, the avarice of mankind, the greed of mankind that compelled them to set this government up the way they did, so that there were three separate but coequal branches that would compete with one another and hold each other in check, Mr. Speaker.

It all depended on a few things. It depended on a public, it depended on men and women that would take care, who would put things above themselves that are bigger than themselves. It depended on a people that believed in the sanctity and the providence of God.

Mr. Speaker, it is a little ripped up here because I carry it with me everywhere, but this is the Constitution of the United States of America. I think you can clearly see it is a piece of paper for all intents and purposes. It cannot defend itself. It rides around in my pocket. It depends on people of integrity to defend it, to uphold it and this judicial system we have.

This system of justice we have is no different.

If people are willing to abuse it, it can no more defend itself than this piece of paper known as the Constitution can defend itself. It depends on us. When it is so willingly abused for avarice, for the greed of mankind, there is little that can be done about it.

This body can do little. Unfortunately, the little we can do there has been no interest shown in doing it, which is the power of funding it. Unfortunately, while we see the abuses, while we watch the abuses front and center, the power that we have to say we will stop it, we have, unfortunately, given them more authority, given them more money than they have even asked for to continue to abuse it.

My friends, my colleagues visited a courthouse today with the former President of the United States for a case in which there is no crime enumerated because there is no crime--specious witnesses to say the least, unfortunately. It is a sad tale no matter which way you look at it.

The reason I am bringing it up and the former speaker brought it up is because you know who can't bring it up? The defendant, the former President of the United States as a defendant can't bring it up because there has been a gag order placed on him.

Mr. Speaker, gag orders are meant--and I am not an attorney, but I think my good friend from Arizona would admit--to protect the accused. Yet, the accused is the one who can't speak in his own defense on his own behalf. Meanwhile, the people that are accusing him, the awesome, unbelievable power of the State--when I say the State, the government, the Federal Government, unlimited resources provided by taxpayers, that is what the accused is up against.

We know because we have seen from history that the accused is the one who is little able to defend themselves, guilty or not guilty, so we want to provide every single protection to the accused, just in case-- just in case, Mr. Speaker, they might not be guilty as charged.

Yet, in this instance, the avarice of man, the guilt and the greed of mankind has compelled this side of the aisle to go after with such a vengeance and use the instruments and the authority of the Federal Government to go after their political rivals.

They are blinded by their greed.

They are blinded by their hatred.

They are blinded by their need to control power so much so that they will do anything, and they have done anything.

We are watching the case in Florida where now we found out the evidence was tampered with. Oh, my goodness, it sure appears like, forget the evidence being tampered with, because it is being tampered with by the same people who appear to have set up the whole charade in the first place, again, against their political rival, the former President of the United States, who might very well be the next President of the United States.

I say all that to say this: History has shown us--and if you have traveled at all and watched conflicts around the world--that these injuries that occur from one side to the other tend to repeat themselves because then if there is going to be a redress--in other words, if there is going to be a fix or a solution to that egregious misuse of power, then the other side is compelled to it when they are in a position of authority. It takes unbelievable will and integrity to say we are not going to engage in that kind of thing. If we are in a position of authority, we are not going to succumb to the greed and the avarice of mankind if you put us in authority.

Mr. Speaker, we all fall short of the grace of God, and the temptation can be overwhelming, which is why it is so important that both sides lay down their greed and say: We are going to try and do this fair and square. We are going to try to do this the right way. We are going to try to win the argument and not use the instruments of Federal power where we otherwise could. We are not going to do that.

Unfortunately, we are in the unchartered territory of the United States of America where that is not the case. This is the charted territory of many despots, dictators, and tyrants around the globe throughout history, and now it has come home to America. Unfortunately, in one of the major political parties in the United States of America. We are watching it weaponized not only against President Trump but average citizens, average citizens who fear that if they might speak, that they might be held in contempt, and they might be bankrupted by somebody that disagrees with them politically.

I will turn it back to my good friend from Virginia and thank him for the time and for bringing the subject up.

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