Twenty two congressmen ask attorney general to explain raid on activist Mark Houck's home
Chip Roy (R) claims that Merrick Garland "oversees an increasingly politicized FBI" and demands explanations for the "irregularities committed."
A total of 22 members of Congress have signed a letter sent to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for an explanation of the arrest of pro-life activist and Catholic speaker Mark Houck by nearly 30 heavily armed FBI agents in front of his seven young children.
The letter, endorsed by Congressman Chip Roy (R) among others, claims the FBI should have had an "extraordinary reason" to arrest Houck in such a manner and added that it appears to be an "extraordinary overreach for political purposes."
The letter demands a response from Garland by Sept. 30.
Final Roy Daines Letter to FBI Regarding Houck Raid by VozMedia on Scribd
"A politicized FBI."
Roy told Fox News that "the raid on Houck" is just another indication of how politicized the FBI and Justice Department have become under President Joe Biden:
The congressman continued, asking Congress for explanations of the "irregularities committed by the FBI and Garland's Justice Department" and calls for "immediate accountability for the use of a SWAT team to detain Houck."
The FBI denied sending a SWAT team to Houck's residence. However, he did not respond to allegations that more than 25 fully armed FBI agents were sent to his home to arrest him that morning:
Houck case: a "terrifying and traumatic" arrest
Mark Houck is a well-known Catholic speaker and pro-life advocate who was arrested at his residence in a "frightening and traumatic" encounter. His wife Ryan-Marie Houck indicated that FBI SWAT members "started banging on the door" of their home "with huge rifles" despite the fact that their "children were screaming."
The warrant accused Houck of alleged violations of the of Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) law and allegedly stems from an incident in which the activist pushed a 72-year-old male abortion advocate who was accompanying women to a Planned Parenthood clinic to receive an abortion. Houck's family contends that the man had been harassing their 12-year-old son and Mark responded in a defensive manner.
His wife indicated that the incident had already been dismissed by the Philadelphia District Court, but somehow it was picked up by the Department of Justice.