Merrick Garland was just being himself
Merrick Garland was a by the book Attorney General. That worked in Trump's favor, since the timid and rules obeying Garland allowed Trump to run out the clock.
Let me try to explain in the context to the Epstein files. Garland would strictly adhere to the DOJ protocol that no names involved in an investigation will be released to the public unless they are charged. And Garland's level of charging is a likely conviction. The names in the Epstein investigation may very well be guilty but proving it beyond a reasonable doubt were difficult to meet. Of the names included, Trump is obvious. Charging, on the other hand, never met Garland's high bar. Victims and witnesses needed to come forward. Statute of limitation must be considered. Garland was not going to release names, especially Trump's, without proof.
On the other hand, the conspiracy theorists in the MAGA world have no such compunctions about proving guilt. They are OK with "guilty in the court of public opinion". They want the names exposed. Now that Trump's name is prominent in the files, they have backed themselves into a corner.
I make this observation in response to the MAGA community reciting over and over of why, if Trump's name is in the files, didn't the Biden DOJ release them. The answer is that Merrick Garland was just being himself and following the rules to the letter. So much so, it ended up benefitting Trump to all of our detriment.
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