Barr ends hearing by insulting Mueller and his entire career
Attorney General William Barr ended his Wednesday hearing by trying to diminish special counsel Robert Mueller’s service, even calling Mueller’s work ‘snitty.’
Attorney General Bill Barr imploded under pressure in the final moments of his Wednesday hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, pettily lashing out at special counsel Robert Mueller — whose career and credentials Barr sought to diminish.
Barr’s shameful behavior came under questioning from Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) — who pointed out how it was an “extraordinary act” for a career prosecutor like Mueller to send a letter to the sitting Attorney General accusing him of misrepresenting facts.
In response, Barr questioned whether Mueller was indeed a career prosecutor, tried to paint Mueller as a political hack, and even called Mueller’s letter to Barr that upended Wednesday’s hearing “snitty.”
“I don’t consider Bob, at this stage, a career prosecutor,” Barr said. “He’s had a career as a prosecutor. He was the head of the FBI for 12 years.”
“But he was also a political appointee and he was a political appointee with me at the Department of Justice,” Barr continued, adding that, “The letter is a bit snitty and I think it was probably written by one of his staff people.”
Let’s get this straight: Mueller is a career prosecutor.
He has worked in government as a prosecutor since the mid 1970s, first at the U.S. Attorney’s office in San Francisco and later at the U.S. Attorney’s office in Boston — where he worked to prosecute fraud, terrorism, and public corruption.
In the 1980s he took a brief hiatus to work in the private sector before returning to the Department of Justice to serve as assistant attorney general for the criminal division of the Department of Justice — rising later to be U.S. attorney of the District of Massachusetts and U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California.
Mueller then served as director of the FBI from 2001 to 2013.
And none of that accounts for Mueller’s decorated military service, in which he received both a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his service in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War.
Ultimately, Barr refused to release notes a staffer had taken about his call with Mueller following Mueller’s letter that accused Barr of misrepresenting the special counsel report.
He gave no good reason for why he wouldn’t release those notes, other than simply saying he wouldn’t.
Without releasing those notes, it pits Barr’s word against Mueller.
Of course, Mueller never perjured himself before Congress, and he has a reputation as a trustworthy person, unlike Barr, who has been exposed as a liar.
And ultimately, such a brazen refusal to turn over the notes of the conversation just makes Barr look like he’s lying some more.
Wednesday was not a good day for Barr, and his embarrassing attacks on Mueller in the final moments of the hearing show how much he truly crumbled under the spotlight.
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
Recommended
Rosenblum, other Democratic AGs ask SCOTUS to block red state bans on emergency abortions
Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and nearly two dozen other Democratic-led states urged the U.S. Supreme Court to preserve the ability of emergency room doctors to provide abortions, arguing that failing to do so would have devastating effects for their health care systems and women across the country.
By Gloria Rebecca Gomez, Arizona Mirror - April 01, 2024Ken Paxton paid $2.3 million to defense lawyers for impeachment trial
The lawyers were paid from his campaign, according to a report filed this week.
By Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune - January 18, 2024Texas governor and attorney general do little to curb state’s chemical plant crisis
Republicans Greg Abbott and Ken Paxton have taken thousands of dollars in donations from chemical companies and their affiliated PACs.
By Jesse Valentine - December 08, 2023