This guy is the worst, Barr none
Some observers thought that they had in William Barr a person who had a track record of service and honor, and that his second stint as Attorney General would be honorable. Many in the public somehow thought that Barr would do the right thing with the Mueller Report. However, as Palmer Report has been saying, nothing could be further from the truth.
The reality is that Barr was never going to be the savior. For one, the Mueller investigation died an abrupt death, although parts of it continue. Second, and more important, Barr has a history of being the “Scandal Scooper Upper,” like a street sweeper at the end of an elephant (GOP) parade. Barr was best known in his first AG stint for giving President George H.W. Bush cover to pardon six officials from Ronald Reagan’s administration, including Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, for alleged crimes associated with the Iran-Contra affair.
One should try to answer the question of why “President” Donald Trump, no fan of the Bush family and especially H.W., would hire a former high-level Cabinet member from that presidency. The answer is right before our eyes, and we see it in Barr’s style. He personally auditioned for first a presidential counsel role, and then Attorney General, by submitting a nineteen-page memo that left many legal and presidential scholars scratching their heads. As noted, Barr is the scooper upper, and Trump only thinks of one thing – protecting his arse.
The tension between Barr and Mueller’s team continues, with a flimsy excuse being released today from DOJ Spokesperson Kerri Kupec that “[e]very page of the ‘confidential report’ provided to Attorney General Barr…was marked ‘May Contain Material Protected Under Fed. R. Crim. P. 6(e)……” The word “may” does not mean certainty, and it is a weak excuse. Barr is the worst possible person for the nation that could be in the Attorney General role, bar none.
Daniel is a lawyer writing and teaching about SCOTUS, and is the author of the book “The Chief Justices” about the SCOTUS as seen through the center seat.