One of two IRS whistleblowers who were investigating Hunter Biden’s massive tax fraud case and who have provided crucial details to the GOP-controlled House about how the Justice Department thwarted them in their efforts has spoken out after the first son’s tax-related plea bargain fell apart in court on Wednesday.
In an op-ed published by The Wall Street Journal, Joseph Ziegler called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to “appoint a special counsel” to examine Hunter Biden’s case.
Justice officials prevented investigators from following the evidence. Appointing a special counsel would create a path for the investigation to continue with integrity. I hope transparency will restore public confidence in the idea that every U.S. taxpayer receives equal treatment under the law,” Ziegler wrote.
“Sweetheart deals shouldn’t be handed out like candy to the rich, powerful and politically connected,” he added.
Ziegler, formerly known as “Whistleblower X,” publicly disclosed his identity when he testified before the House Oversight Committee on July 19. A 13-year special agent in the IRS’ Criminal Investigation Division, he described himself as a “gay Democrat married to a man,” Fox News noted on Friday.
He testified that Hunter Biden “should have been charged with a tax felony, and not only the tax misdemeanor charge,” noting further that communications and text messages reviewed by investigators “may be a contradiction to what President Biden was saying about not being involved in Hunter’s overseas business dealings.”
Ziegler went on to explain his motivations for coming forward.
“I came forward because in my opinion, Hunter Biden received preferential treatment. Although some in Congress tried to explain away my concerns, what I saw during the investigation was entirely outside the norm,” he wrote.
Several congressional Democrats and the White House have refuted testimony from Ziegler and another whistleblower, IRS supervisor Gary Shapley.
Jamie Raskin, D-Md., claimed that “MAGA Republicans” of taking the side of “IRS agents from the deep state against a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney and a rich guy exercising his Second Amendment rights but now facing criminal gun charges and tax charges that they would call in any other circumstance purely technical.”
In his op-ed, Ziegler contended that during his career at the IRS, he had disagreed with prosecutors on various occasions, but the Hunter Biden case was the first instance where he felt “handcuffed” by the Justice Department.
“I have disagreed with prosecutors in the past. In some cases I didn’t get my way. But those disagreements always followed the normal investigative process. I was always allowed to follow concrete evidence and investigate a case without being handcuffed or slow walked by the Justice Department.”
He then added: “I would characterize the Justice Department’s behavior as obstruction.”
