Federal Elections Committee Chair Sean Cooksey said the Department of Justice attempted "to intimidate and chill private citizens and organizations from campaigning on behalf of President Trump" when it sent a letter to billionaire Elon Musk in late October warning him that the $1 million giveaways he offered to voters in battleground states ahead of the election could be illegal.
Cooksey also compared the "misuse of government power against President Trump's campaign" to the DOJ's abuses during Watergate.
"The underlying motivation behind this stunt is obvious," Cooksey wrote Wednesday in a letter to DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz pressing for an investigation into the matter, The Washington Free Beacon reported.
"Employees of President Biden's Department of Justice wanted to stop an independent political committee from campaigning for President Trump in crucial swing states just prior to Election Day."
Cooksey also accused the DOJ's Public Integrity Section of leaking the letter to The New York Times, which he said, "also violates the department's long-standing policy against the identification of uncharged parties and the disclosure of prejudicial information."
"Our country cannot allow the Department to be used as a weapon against its perceived political opponents," he wrote. "I urge you to help undertake a thorough investigation, remove bad actors from the Department's ranks, and hold guilty parties accountable."
Musk, who will work on government efficiency as a member of Trump's Cabinet, hasn't been charged with any wrongdoing.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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