Deep State Accountability Act of 2023
This bill requires the Department of Justice to appoint a special counsel to (1) investigate 51 individuals who signed a statement titled Public Statement on the Hunter Biden Emails and dated October 19, 2020; and (2) prosecute any violations by such individuals of a specified voting rights law or other unlawful conduct involving an abuse of power or knowingly engaging in election interference.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4807 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4807
To provide for the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate and
prosecute any charges arising from the activity of signatories to the
letter entitled ``Public Statement on the Hunter Biden Emails''
(October 19, 2020) involving election interference.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 20, 2023
Mr. Santos introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate and
prosecute any charges arising from the activity of signatories to the
letter entitled ``Public Statement on the Hunter Biden Emails''
(October 19, 2020) involving election interference.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Deep State Accountability Act of
2023''.
SEC. 2. APPOINTMENT OF SPECIAL COUNSEL.
(a) Appointment.--The Attorney General shall appoint a Special
Counsel to investigate and prosecute any charges arising from the
activity of a covered person that involved--
(1) a violation of section 2004(b) of the Revised Statutes
(52 U.S.C. 10101(b)); or
(2) other unlawful conduct involving an abuse of power or
knowingly engaging in election interference.
(b) Qualifications and Requirements of Special Counsel.--The
Special Counsel appointed under this section--
(1) shall be non-partisan;
(2) shall comply with all requests to appear under oath
before the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives and of the Senate;
(3) may not have made any political contributions or
engaged in political actions (including through their spouse)
with the presidential campaigns of either President Trump or
President Biden; and
(4) shall report to the Committees on the Judiciary of the
House of Representatives and of the Senate any attempt by the
Administration of President Biden or the Department of Justice
to halt, delay, or interfere with the investigation of the
Special Counsel.
(c) Scope of Prosecutorial Jurisdiction.--
(1) In general.--The special counsel is authorized to fully
investigate and prosecute and all matters related to the
activity described in subsection (a). Such jurisdiction shall
also include the authority to investigate and prosecute Federal
crimes, other than those classified as Class B or C
misdemeanors or infractions, that may arise out of the
investigation or prosecution such matters, including perjury,
obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence, and
intimidation of witnesses.
(2) Expansion of jurisdiction.--An appropriate district
court of the United States, upon the request of the Special
Counsel, may expand the prosecutorial jurisdiction of the
Special Counsel.
(d) Authority.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Special Counsel shall have, with respect to all matters in such Special
Counsel's prosecutorial jurisdiction established under this section,
full power and independent authority to exercise all investigative and
prosecutorial functions and powers of the Department of Justice, the
Attorney General, and any other officer or employee of the Department
of Justice, except that the Attorney General shall exercise direction
or control as to those matters that specifically require the Attorney
General's personal action under section 2516 of title 18. Such
investigative and prosecutorial functions and powers shall include--
(1) conducting proceedings before grand juries and other
investigations;
(2) participating in court proceedings and engaging in any
litigation, including civil and criminal matters, that such
Special Counsel considers necessary; a
(3) appealing any decision of a court in any case or
proceeding in which such Special Counsel participates in an
official capacity;
(4) reviewing all documentary evidence available from any
source;
(5) determining whether to contest the assertion of any
testimonial privilege;
(6) receiving appropriate national security clearances and,
if necessary, contesting in court (including, where
appropriate, participating in in camera proceedings) any claim
of privilege or attempt to withhold evidence on grounds of
national security;
(7) making applications to any Federal court for a grant of
immunity to any witness, consistent with applicable statutory
requirements, or for warrants, subpoenas, or other court
orders, and, for purposes of sections 6003, 6004, and 6005 of
title 18, exercising the authority vested in a United States
attorney or the Attorney General;
(8) inspecting, obtaining, or using the original or a copy
of any tax return, in accordance with the applicable statutes
and regulations, and, for purposes of section 6103 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the regulations issued
thereunder, exercising the powers vested in a United States
attorney or the Attorney General;
(9) initiating and conducting prosecutions in any court of
competent jurisdiction, framing and signing indictments, filing
informations, and handling all aspects of any case, in the name
of the United States; and
(10) consulting with the United States attorney for the
district in which any violation of law with respect to which
the Special Counsel is appointed was alleged to have occurred.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT.
(a) Oversight of Conduct of Independent Counsel.--
(1) Congressional oversight.--The appropriate committees of
the Congress shall have oversight jurisdiction with respect to
the official conduct of any Special Counsel appointed under
section 2, and such Special Counsel shall have the duty to
cooperate with the exercise of such oversight jurisdiction.
(2) Reports to congress.--The Special Counsel appointed
under section 2 shall submit to the Congress annually a report
on the activities of the Special Counsel, including a
description of the progress of any investigation or prosecution
conducted by the Special Counsel. Such report may omit any
matter that in the judgment of the Special Counsel should be
kept confidential, but shall provide information adequate to
justify the expenditures that the Special Counsel has made.
(b) Oversight of Conduct of Attorney General.--Within 15 days after
receiving an inquiry about a particular case under this Act, which is a
matter of public knowledge, from a committee of the Congress with
jurisdiction over this Act, the Attorney General shall provide the
following information to that committee with respect to that case:
(1) When the information about the case was received.
(2) Whether a preliminary investigation is being conducted,
and if so, the date it began.
(c) Information Relating to Impeachment.--The Special Counsel shall
advise the House of Representatives of any substantial and credible
information which such Special Counsel receives, in carrying out the
Special Counsel's responsibilities under this Act that may constitute
grounds for an impeachment. Nothing in this Act or section 49 of title
28, United States Code, shall prevent the Congress or either House
thereof from obtaining information in the course of an impeachment
proceeding.
SEC. 4. DEFINITION.
In this Act, the term ``covered person'' means any of the following
signatories to the letter entitled ``Public Statement on the Hunter
Biden Emails'' (October 19, 2020):
(1) Jim Clapper.
(2) Mike Hayden.
(3) Leon Panetta.
(4) John Brennan.
(5) Thomas Finger.
(6) Rick Ledgett.
(7) John McLaughlin.
(8) Michael Morell.
(9) Mike Vickers.
(10) Doug Wise.
(11) Nick Rasmussen.
(12) Russ Travers.
(13) Andy Liepman.
(14) John Moseman.
(15) Larry Pfeiffer.
(16) Jeremy Bash.
(17) Rodney Snyder.
(18) Glenn Gerstell.
(19) David B. Buckley.
(20) Nada Bakos.
(21) Patty Brandmaier.
(22) James B. Bruce.
(23) David Cariens.
(24) Janice Cariens.
(25) Paul Kolbe.
(26) Peter Corsell.
(27) Brett Davis.
(28) Roger Zane George.
(29) Steven L. Hall.
(30) Kent Harrington.
(31) Don Hepburn.
(32) Timothy D. Kilbourn.
(33) Ron Marks.
(34) Jonna Hiestand Mendez.
(35) Emile Nakhleh.
(36) Gerald A. O'Shea.
(37) David Priess.
(38) Pam Purcilly.
(39) Marc Polymeropoulos.
(40) Chris Savos.
(41) Nick Shapiro.
(42) John Sipher.
(43) Stephen Slick.
(44) Cynthia Strand.
(45) Greg Tarbell.
(46) David Terry.
(47) Greg Treverton.
(48) John Tullius.
(49) David A. Vanell.
(50) Winston Wiley.
(51) Kristin Wood.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
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