There’s a growing sense of frustration with the Trump Justice Department among some parental activists who say they had expected a friendlier ear from the new team at DOJ.
They thought they had an ally in Ed Martin, but now believe he’s being sidelined.
They were particularly dismayed by his recent ouster from the DOJ’s “Weaponization” task force.
“We can’t expect the DOJ to self-correct or to fix it, but what they are doing is so wrong. They are protecting the deep state people,” said Kelly John Walker, who was arrested and later convicted of disorderly conduct and interfering with an educational institution after he confronted school leaders in Arizona over their coronavirus policies.
“They are deliberately trying to fool President Trump and the American public,” Mr. Walker said.
He leads Parents Demanding Justice and FreedomTalk Magazine. He had been working with Mr. Martin to seek a formal apology from the federal government for what they saw as unfair treatment of parents during the Biden administration.
That included then-Attorney General Merrick Garland ordering the FBI to pursue “threats” against school boards from unruly parents. That memo was prodded by a letter from the National School Board Association, which labeled the unruly behavior “a form of domestic terrorism.”
Mr. Trump promised to “fix” the labeling of parents under the prior administration on his first day, and Mr. Walker said the parents want to see action.
He said he has recordings of confrontational meetings with Justice Department officials.
One insider said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has hindered the weaponization group’s efforts.
Steve Bannon, an adviser to Mr. Trump in his first term, said getting Mr. Martin back in the saddle there would be a big step in the right direction.
“We need Ed Martin back at main Justice and in charge of ‘Weaponization’ Working Group,” Mr. Bannon told “Seen, Heard & Whispered.”
Mr. Martin, for now, remains the Justice Department’s pardon attorney.
Parental rights, part 2
Rep. Greg Steube is prodding the Justice Department to investigate four Democrat-led states over allegations that they aren’t allowing parents to use religious objections to opt out of school vaccine mandates.
The Florida Republican is leading a group of fellow GOPers in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon asking for the probe of Maine, California, New York and Connecticut.
“The actions of these four states deny parents and guardians the choice over their children’s healthcare decisions and infringe upon constitutionally protected rights. As a result, more states, such as Hawaii and Massachusetts, have been emboldened to further encroach upon Americans’ rights by eliminating religious exemptions for vaccines,” the lawmakers said in the letter, which went out Thursday night.
Other Republicans backing the request include: Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado; Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio, Rep. Byron Donalds and Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, Rep. Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin, Reps. Keith Self, Beth Van Duyne and Michael Cloud of Texas, Rep. Ben Cline of Virginia, Rep. Troy Downing of Montana, and Rep. Harriet Hageman of Wyoming.
“Religious freedom is the cornerstone of our republic. It is inexcusable that New York, California, Maine and Connecticut refuse to provide people of faith with a religious exemption from their vaccine mandates. This is not only a direct violation of the free exercise clause, but it is also a grave assault on civil liberties,” Mr. Steube told “Seen, Heard & Whispered.”
“Your constitutional rights should never take a backseat to a vaccine mandate. That is why I am requesting Attorney General Pam Bondi and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon launch formal investigations of all states that continue to violate the constitutional rights of the American people via coercion and infringement on their religious beliefs.”
The letter notes there are two ongoing federal cases out of New York that the Justice Department could intervene in.
One involves parents challenging the lack of a religious exemption in New York through Children’s Health Defense, which Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy founded.
Another involves a 16-year-old who challenged the COVID-19 masking requirement in her school district.
California and Maine eliminated their religious exemptions in 2015 and 2019. New York also eliminated its in 2019.
Connecticut did away with its exemption in 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Melania tops Jill
An adviser to the Biden White House tells “Seen, Heard & Whispered” that first lady Melania Trump has done more in her first year than Jill Biden did in four full years in the White House.
The aide, speaking about the release of “Melania,” the new documentary about the first lady, said Mrs. Biden never worked Capitol Hill as astutely as Mrs. Trump has done, winning passage in May of the Take It Down Act, which criminalizes intimate and deep fake images shared online without consent.
The Take It Down Act and Mrs. Trump’s work protecting youth on social media, promoting opportunities with foster children, and reuniting Ukrainian children with their families during the ongoing war were covered in the new documentary.
• “Seen, Heard & Whispered” is a weekly column taking you inside the conversations happening in Washington’s power corridors, the moves being made and the whispers that explain what’s really going on in the nation’s capital. Email tips to whispered@washingtontimes.com.
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• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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