Yeomans Work: Say No to Barr
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 20, 2018 – In the latest edition of Yeomans Work, AFJ Senior Justice Fellow Bill Yeomans writes that President Trump’s choice for attorney general, William Barr, has amassed a record that should disqualify him from serving in the job in this administration.
Writes Yeomans: “Barr joined former Attorneys General Michael Mukasey and Edwin Meese III, in praising Jeff Sessions as an ‘outstanding’ attorney general. Their op-ed endorsed Sessions’s refusal to hold police officers accountable for violating civil rights, supported his harsh criminal agenda, praised his draconian views on immigration, and touted his willingness to stand up for religious liberty (and, by extension, against LGBT rights).”
To make matters worse, Trump’s selection of Barr was followed by the revelation that Barr sent an “unsolicited 19-page memo” to the Justice Department this year, arguing against the Robert Mueller investigation. This suggests that Barr’s nomination is almost certainly based on Trump’s belief that Barr will curtail the probe. Yeomans observes, “The memo urges DOJ to reject the theory of obstruction of justice upon which the Mueller inquiry appears to be premised. It asserts that the president’s facially lawful executive actions cannot be overturned even if undertaken with a corrupt motive. The theory is consistent with his support of Trump’s firing of Comey. If accepted, it would result in shutting down Mueller’s obstruction of justice investigation, including any demand that Trump submit to questioning.”
Yeomans concludes: “The unraveling of the Trump presidency is accelerating. The Senate needs to consider whether it should confirm any of Trump’s nominees until the carnage clears and we are confident that we have a legitimately elected president. It should most certainly not confirm an attorney general who will stop us from learning the truth.”
Yeomans Work focuses on the challenges to the justice system in the era of Trump. Bill Yeomans is available for media interviews. Contact Laurie Kinney, Communications Director, at laurie@afj.org or 202-464-7367.