House Judiciary questions Merrick Garland over public release of would-be Trump assassin's manifesto

The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland regarding the public release of Ryan Wesley Routh's manifesto, which put a bounty on former President Donald Trump's head.

The Justice Department included the alleged manifesto in a court filing earlier this week, which outlined Routh's plan to assassinate the former president, and promised a $150,000 bounty to anyone who "complete[s] the job" if he failed. 

Routh was arrested on Sept. 15 after he allegedly attempted to assassinate the former president at a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Secret Service reportedly spotted Routh before he was able to fire a shot at Trump, but he had allegedly already aimed the gun at the former president.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan questioned the release of the manifesto, claiming it appeared to be in conflict with current Justice Department guidelines, and could endanger Trump by posing as a blueprint for future attacks.

"During your tenure as Attorney General, the Department has generally refused to release details about so-called ‘manifestos’ written by the perpetrators of high-profile crimes," Jordan wrote in the letter. "Yet, earlier this week, in a public court filing, the Department released a letter in which the man who sought to assassinate President Donald J. Trump in Florida on September 15, 2024, offered a $150,000 bounty on President Trump." 

"The Department’s decision to broadcast the attempted assassin’s bounty on President Trump – at the same time that the Department is aggressively and unconstitutionally prosecuting President Trump – raises significant concern that the Department could cause additional harm to occur," he added.

Jordan said the committee was investigating whether the DOJ was "upholding its standard of impartiality," and requested all documents and communications related to the manifesto and the FBI's May 2023 “Protection of Legacy Tokens” memorandum by Oct. 9, 2024.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.