Vice President Kamala Harris is receiving help preparing for her debate with former President Donald Trump from an attorney defending Google in the government’s antitrust lawsuit against the company.
Karen Dunn, the lead attorney representing the search engine giant, has been assisting the vice president in preparing for Tuesday’s debate, according to a letter sent to Attorney General Merrick Garland by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH).
The letter, dated September 10, 2024, raises concerns about potential conflicts of interest, political bias, and alleged collusion between the Biden-Harris administration, Google, and Dunn. Jordan demands a briefing on how the Department of Justice is handling these matters, especially in light of the antitrust case.
“In light of existing evidence that the Biden-Harris Administration pressured and colluded with Google to censor the lawful speech of American citizens, we write to request a briefing about how the Department of Justice is working to combat potential conflicts of interest and political bias,” the letter reads.
Jordan also highlights concerns about Dunn’s role as an advisor to the vice president while also defending Google in the lawsuit.
“According to recent press coverage, Karen Dunn, a ‘lead attorney’ representing Google in the antitrust case United States v. Google LLC, is also simultaneously leading Vice President Harris’s preparations for the September 10 presidential debate,” Jordan wrote.
The lawmaker contends that “This apparent conflict of interest raises serious concerns about whether Dunn’s relationship with key figures in the Biden-Harris Administration creates a conflict of interest that could inappropriately bias the Department’s approach in United States v. Google LLC.”
The committee then asks for a briefing on how the DOJ is addressing the potential conflict of interest, pointing out that Garland vowed to keep the Justice Department independent from political concerns.
On the day that President Biden announced his intent to nominate you as Attorney General, you pledged to ‘guarantee[] the independence of the Department from partisan influence.’ This assertion is hard to square with reporting that Ms. Dunn is leading debate preparations for Vice President Harris while she also leads Google’s defense.
“We request a briefing on how the Department of Justice is working to combat this and other potential conflicts of interest and political bias in United States v. Google LLC,” Jordan wrote.
The debate comes as Harris continues refusing to engage with the press. Harris appeared to try getting out of the debate, complaining about rules regarding hot mics.
Meanwhile, Trump’s team has been preparing to attack Harris on her record while serving in public office. The plan is to force her to defend her policies as California’s attorney general, senator, and vice president.
Harris has faced criticism from folks on both sides of the aisle for her tenure as California’s top prosecutor.
Another Trump campaign official said Trump will go particularly hard at Harris over her seven-year record as San Francisco’s top prosecutor.
Kamala Harris is going to have to remember the names of the people whose lives were lost in San Francisco due to her weak-on-crime policies. She’s going to have to be prepared to answer for why criminals like Edwin Ramos were free to kill.
She’ll have to explain to the nation why she wanted to give drug dealers a get-out-of-jail-free card. President Trump is not going to let her get away with the lie that she is some law-and-order prosecutor.
The debate could become pivotal during the election season as it comes just after Harris’ honeymoon phase has come to an end.
