Answering pointed questions in the Senate Judiciary Committee today, 68-year-old William Barr got dragged into the 2020 presidential campaign where Democrats look for anything to impeach 72-year-old Donald Trump. Barr told the committee that Trump was cleared by Special Counsel Robert Mueller of colluding with Russia, dismissing questions of obstruction of justice. Democrats looked for anything possible to continue the collusion or obstruction narrative, even though Mueller didn’t charge Trump with collusion or obstruction. Democrats hoped that Mueller’s March 22 final report would find the president guilty of collusion and obstruction of justice, when it found neither. Expecting to run on the same collusion narrative that dominated the headlines for nearly two years, Democrats can’t accept Barr’s findings that the Mueller investigation ended without charging Trump.
Republicans on the committee today asked questions of Barr about the ongoing investigation into the origins of the counterintelligence investigation against Trump and his campaign, started in the Summer of 2016. Republicans wanted to know the extent of the FISA [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] Court abuse used to wiretap Trump campaign officials. Democrats wanted no part of any suggestion that former President Barack Obama’s Justice Department, FBI and National Security Agency used to nation’s national security apparatus to sabotage Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign to get Hillary elected. Democrats put Barr on the defense, accusing him of doing Trump’s bidding, rather that serving as an independent attorney general. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Ha.) accused Barr of “lying,” prompting a sharp rebuke from Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
Splitting hairs over past testimony, Hirono accused Barr of lying when asked a question April 9 by Rep. Charlie Christ (R-Fl.), asking whether or not members of Mueller’s team were frustrated with his March 24 four-page summary. Hirono insists that Mueller wrote Barr March 27 asking he provide “more context,” something Barr did in his April 18 full, redacted report. “But you knew you lied. And now, we know,” Hirono said, embarrassing herself and the committee. “You slandered this man from top to bottom,” Graham told Hirono, finding her accusations unacceptable. “He didn’t know if Mueller supported his conclusions,” Hirono insisted, even after Barr said he consulted with Mueller before releasing his four-page summary. Hirono was more interested in scoring cheap political points than listening carefully to the Attorney General explain Mueller’s findings in the two-year investigation.
Hirono used her time to hurl accusations at Barr, playing to the anti-Trump media that seeks anything with which to impeach Trump. “Now the American people know that you are no different from Rudy Giuliani or Kellyanne Conway or any of the other people who sacrificed their once decent reputation,” Hirono said, accusing Barr of providing cover the president. Barr responded to Hirono’s attacks with grace-under-pressure, not letting himself get rattled, sticking to his more neutral analysis. Hirono wanted like the anti-Trump media to drive a wedge between Barr and Mueller, something that hasn’t happened. Graham told the Committee that he would extend an invitation to Mueller if he felt the Attorney General misstated his findings. Only Hirono, and other Democrats on the Committee, wants to point out discrepancies between Barr’s four-page summary and the complete report’s real findings.
Barr faces a no-win situation, taking exception to Hirono’s accusations of pro-Trump bias. Hirono can’t own her anti-Trump bias but point fingers at Barr for defending the president against nearly two years of Democrat and media’s unfounded accusations. After the Special Counsel’s report, Hirono and other Democrats showed no signs of letting up on their narrative that Trump colluded with Russia and obstructed justice. “You’ve chose to be the president’s lawyer and side with him over the interests of the American people,” said Hirono, expressing extreme prejudice against Trump. Hirono and other Democrats have tried, convicted and sentenced Trump based on speculative media reports, contradicted by Mueller. Barr told Hirono that that the president didn’t obstruct justice, he was dealing with what he thought was a conflicted, unfair investigation, alleging collusion and obstruction.
Barr told the Judiciary Committee today that Trump was not guilty of any underlying crime when it came to Russian collusion and obstruction of justice. Pushing the Democrat narrative, Hirono and other Democrats on the committee have tried, convicted and sentenced Trump, regardless of the Special Counsel’s findings. There’s nothing that Barr or Mueller could do to change Democrats’ minds when it comes to Trump’s Russian collusion and obstruction of justice. Barr couldn’t understand Mueller’s decision to not render an opinion on obstruction of justice, something that breached Department of Justice protocol. Barr explained that prosecutors either charge or not charge but don’t speculate about imponderables. One thing clear, Barr has become a lightening rod for anti-Trump Democrats and the media, looking for anything possible to charge the president.