WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) led several of her Senate Judiciary Committee Republican colleagues today in a letter to President Joe Biden requesting that he withdraw Hampton Dellinger’s nomination to lead the United States Office of Special Counsel (OSC).

Biden’s Nominee For Special Counsel Has Direct Ties To Hunter Biden and Burisma

“Mr. Dellinger’s connection to the Hunter Biden Burisma matter gives us serious pause about his nomination to be Special Counsel. From 2013 to 2020, Mr. Dellinger was a partner at the Washington, D.C. office of Boies Schiller Flexner, where Hunter Biden also served as counsel. Of note, Mr. Dellinger worked on Boies Schiller’s Crisis Management and Government Response team. Recent reports indicate that—according to emails from Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop—Mr. Dellinger, Mr. Biden, and several other members of the Crisis Management team attended a dinner together in March 2014. Just weeks after the dinner, Hunter Biden suggested to Burisma—whose Board of Directors he served on—that the company meet with members of the firm’s Crisis Management team. Subsequently, Mr. Dellinger allegedly worked closely with Hunter Biden on various Burisma-related matters.”

The Office Of Special Counsel Must Protect Whistleblowers Who Are Essential To Guaranteeing Accountability Within Government

“As one of OSC’s primary responsibilities is to protect whistleblowers from retaliatory acts, Mr. Dellinger’s nomination is particularly concerning given his apparent connection to Hunter Biden and his work with Burisma. It is important to note that Mr. Dellinger, as Special Counsel, would be charged with ensuring that whistleblowers—including the IRS whistleblowers in the Hunter Biden matter—would not be subject to reprisal. In light of Mr. Dellinger’s significant connections to Mr. Biden, we have serious doubts as to whether he could act impartially in fulfilling OSC’s obligations.” 

Dellinger Cannot Be Trusted To Remain Impartial, and Biden Should Withdraw His Nomination To Be Special Counsel

“The Office of Special Counsel’s core mission is to protect whistleblowers, who are essential to guaranteeing that there is accountability in our system of government. We do not believe that Mr. Dellinger, with his extensive involvement with Hunter Biden and the Burisma matter, could fairly and impartially carry out his duty to safeguard whistleblowers from retaliation—particularly the IRS whistleblowers, who were critical in shedding light on the two-tiered system of justice perpetrated under your watch. For all of these reasons, we urge you to withdraw Mr. Dellinger’s nomination to be Special Counsel.”

• U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) joined as co-signers.

Click here to read the letter.