Republican Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is urging his fellow Congress members to initiate an investigation into Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing President Donald Trump’s case. Gaetz and others are expressing concerns about Chutkan’s potential political bias.
Chutkan, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, has been accused of displaying open bias and partisanship in her courtroom, particularly concerning cases related to individuals associated with the January 6, 2021 protests at the U.S. Capitol.
Republicans have raised objections following Chutkan’s appointment to oversee the case related to the January 6 events and its links to the 2020 election. Previously, she drew attention for handing out sentences to members of the January 6 crowd that exceeded the recommendations of federal prosecutors.
In his resolution, Gaetz additionally alleges that Chutkan supported the violent 2020 Black Lives Matter protests while simultaneously criticizing the events at the Capitol. Gaetz is introducing a resolution in the House that seeks to censure Chutkan and direct the House Judiciary Committee to investigate her behavior.
Gaetz stated, “It is deeply troubling to witness a United States District Court judge exhibit such blatant impropriety from the bench. Judge Tanya Chutkan’s inconsistency in her stringent sentencing of January 6th defendants, despite openly endorsing the violent Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, not only reveals a lack of impartiality but also a disregard for the solemn responsibility of a judge to administer justice fairly.”
One specific incident that Gaetz’s resolution highlights is a sentencing hearing on October 4, 2021. During the hearing, Chutkan contested a comparison drawn between the Capitol protests and the riots and looting that followed the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer in 2020.
Gaetz quoted Chutkan as saying, “People gathered all over the country last year to protest the violent murder by the police of an unarmed man… to equate the actions of individuals protesting, mostly peacefully, for civil rights to those of a violent mob attempting to overthrow the legitimately elected government is a false analogy and disregards a real peril that the January 6 riot posed to the foundation of our democracy.”
According to the text of the resolution, Gaetz also highlighted the case of Matthew Mazzocco during that time. Mazzocco was described as a nonviolent offender who spent a mere 12 minutes on Capitol grounds and encouraged others to maintain peaceful behavior on January 6, 2021. Despite this, Chutkan sentenced him to 45 days in jail for a misdemeanor charge.
Both President Trump and his allies in Congress and other spheres have accused Chutkan of engaging in politically motivated conduct. Chutkan’s appointment as a perceived partisan figure comes amid Trump facing what he believes are politically driven attacks from Special Counsel Jack Smith and officials in the Justice Department under Democrat President Joe Biden’s administration.
