Critics of President Donald Trump have been arguing that one of the main reasons to vote him out of office in November is removing William Barr from his position as U.S. attorney general. And the Trump loyalist’s opponents, according to Washington Post reporter James Hohmann, will have some more material to work with: a forthcoming 277-page report from the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
Due out next week, the Center/CREW report, Hohmann stresses, is “sharply critical” of Barr — and it’s also quite comprehensive.
The report, according to Hohmann, “focuses on nine areas, including the misleading summary Barr initially offered of Special Counsel Bob Mueller’s conclusions; the Justice Department’s handling of the whistleblower complaint related to President Trump’s infamous call with Ukraine’s president; his intervention in politically sensitive prosecutions, such as the cases of former Trump advisers Roger Stone and Michael Flynn; the deployment of federal agents and troops against protestors, including the order to clear Lafayette Square; the firing or reassignment of U.S. attorneys, especially in the Southern District of New York; his role in trying to block the publication of material unflattering to the president, such as former National Security Adviser John Bolton’s memoir; the politicization of several offices within the department, in particular the Office of Legal Counsel; and his resistance to congressional oversight, including subpoenas.” Continue reading.