The Democrats aren’t letting Attorney General William Barr off the hook. Barr will testify before Congress on Wednesday, May 1 about Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
When he testifies, Barr will almost certainly face hostile, partisan questioning from Democrats, who have maligned Barr’s handling of Mueller’s report. Republicans will likely question the AG on his plans to review alleged misconduct in the origins of the Russia probe.
Barr to testify before Congress
Barr will testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is chaired by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), next week. In a press release Wednesday, the committee listed Barr as a witness in a hearing titled, “The Department of Justice’s Investigation of Russian Interference with the 2016 presidential election.”
The attorney general released Mueller’s report in slightly redacted form last Thursday. While it establishes “links” between the Trump campaign and Russia, Mueller’s report exonerates Trump of criminal collusion with the Kremlin. Mueller also laid out actions by Trump that could be seen as obstructing the investigation, but declined to make a charging decision on obstruction of justice.
Barr will testify at 10 a.m. next Wednesday about his handling of the report and Mueller’s findings. He is expected to testify before the House Judiciary Committee the next day.
Partisan circus incoming?
When Barr does sit down to testify, he can expect a hostile reception from Democrats who have stepped up attacks on Barr ever since he released a brief letter summarizing Mueller’s report last month that exonerated Trump of obstruction and collusion. The letter also explained that Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein determined that Trump did not obstruct justice, as they took over the matter from Mueller.
Democrats later protested Barr’s decision to hold a press conference before releasing a redacted version of the report, saying that Barr used the presser to spin Mueller’s findings to Trump’s benefit. For his part, Barr expressed sympathy for Trump’s angry responses to being investigated, saying the president “was frustrated and angered by a sincere belief that the investigation was undermining his presidency, propelled by his political opponents and fueled by illegal leaks.”
The subsequent release of Mueller’s partial report with no evidence of collusion led to an immediate but predictable shift on the left, as Democrats quickly spun Mueller’s report into a damning indictment of Trump despite its lack of criminal charges, with many Democrats pivoting in lock-step from collusion to claiming that Trump obstructed justice.
Democrats also soon rejected an offer from Barr to view a less-redacted version of the report.
Meanwhile, Democrats have characterized Barr’s initial summary of Mueller’s findings as misleading, with many saying that Barr covered up evidence of obstruction that Mueller uncovered. They argue that Barr was wrong to not charge Trump with obstruction and have even questioned his authority to make a charging decision, saying that Mueller intended to leave it up to Congress to decide.
Answers on spying?
Democrats also responded with outrage when Barr told Congress earlier this month that “spying did occur” on the Trump campaign as he promised to review misconduct in the origins of the Russia investigation. Democrats accused Barr of promoting a Republican conspiracy theory that the “Deep State,” Democrats, and mainstream media attempted to sabotage President Trump, although Barr said nothing more than that spying did occur.
Barr’s exoneration of Trump and statements on spying have prompted Democrats to smear him with vile rhetoric, with many effectively accusing him of betraying his country and office to serve as President Trump’s personal lawyer. Some, including Democratic presidential candidate Eric Swalwell (D-CA), have called for the AG’s resignation.
The Democrats’ attacks on Barr seem motivated to deny Trump the exoneration that Mueller’s report provides, while simultaneously diverting attention from misconduct by the Obama administration’s surveillance of the Trump campaign. Smearing Barr allows the Democrats to argue that Barr’s exoneration of Trump is partisan and not consistent with Mueller’s findings while keeping alive a suggestion that Barr has hidden evidence of wrongdoing by Trump in his redactions, or else that Mueller’s report provides “more questions than answers” about alleged wrongdoing by Trump, rather than vindicating him.
But the attorney general is not the only high-ranking official that Democrats are asking to testify about Mueller probe. Before Barr’s press conference last week, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called on Mueller to testify as soon as possible to clear up the attorney general’s “lies.”
The special counsel is expected to testify in May. For his part, Barr has said he has no problem with Mueller testifying.
While Democrats will likely attack his handling of the Mueller report, Barr will also face questions from Republicans about the Obama administration’s spying on the Trump campaign. Sen. Graham has said that he will investigate the origins of the Russia investigation amid calls from President Trump and his allies to get to the bottom of the Russia hoax.
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