House Democrats Set To Escalate Fight With William Barr
House Democrats are set to escalate their fight with Attorney General William Barr, according to a new report from The New York Post.
Following Barr’s testimony before Congress, the Democrats went on the offensive, and they are now looking to take legal action against the country’s top lawyer. These maneuvers could have dire consequences for Barr, and potentially lead to his impeachment or arrest, according to The New York Post.
“We’re going to use every means at our disposal in order to do our jobs,” Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland announced.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler issued a subpoena, and frustrated Democratic lawmakers are threatening to take Barr to court. This could lead to his impeachment, or even arrest, at least in theory, since there is a number of legal maneuvers the Democrats could use to effectively punish the top lawyer.
The lawmakers could, for instance, turn to censure or publicly reprimand, which would start a potential criminal proceeding against the attorney general. This would not be unprecedented, given that the House voted in 2012 to hold Barack Obama’s attorney general, Eric Holder, in criminal contempt over the “Fast and Furious” scandal.
The House could also, according to the report, invoke so-called inherent contempt — this would lead to Barr’s arrest. However, a congressional arrest has not been ordered since the 1930s, so it remains highly unlikely. It would also cause a bloody legal battle which would be challenged in the courts.
House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler is making what he calls a final “counter offer” to Attorney General William Barr’s refusal to grant immediate access to the underlying evidence in Robert Mueller’s report https://t.co/CZpojviwx3
— POLITICO (@politico) May 4, 2019
Lastly, some Democrats have also called for the impeachment of William Barr, but this is also unlikely, according to the report, since removing the attorney general from office would require Senate approval. The GOP-controlled Senate would almost certainly object to the impeachment.
It comes as no surprise that the Democratic Party is targeting William Barr in the aftermath of his testimony, given that the attorney general is being accused of misinterpreting Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s findings, and misleading the American public.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Mueller found no Trump-Russia conspiracy, but refused to exonerate the president when it comes to obstruction of justice. Mueller did not charge Trump with the crime either, leaving plenty of room for speculation, even though he had outlined a number of instances which can be interpreted as obstruction of justice.
The Democrats have continually accused Barr of lying, and covering up for Donald Trump. According to House Democrats, Barr is acting like the president’s personal attorney, and not like the country’s top lawyer.
Barr now has until Monday to reveal the redacted parts of Robert Mueller’s final report. Unless he does so, the Democrats will, as they have vowed, take legal action.
