Trump refused to say that he had confidence in Barr and then demanded that the attorney general investigate non-existent election fraud.
Trump told reporters:
AG Barr watch continues…
Q: Do you still have confidence in Bill Barr?
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President Trump: "Ask me that in a number of weeks from now."
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) December 3, 2020
“Ask me that in a number of weeks from now. They should be looking at all of this fraud,†Trump tells reporters in Oval Office when asked if he has confidence in AG Bill Barr.
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) December 3, 2020
The implication is that if Barr doesn’t investigate Trump’s false claims of election fraud, which according to Barr, they already did, the president will fire the attorney general. In more direct terms, Trump’s answer was a threat to Barr to either give Trump’s baseless conspiracies credibility or he will be fired.
If Trump fires Barr, he could appoint someone like Rudy Giuliani to be new attorney general, theoretically if he ignored all laws and rules, which would allow him to both burn the DOJ to the ground, and use the Department of Justice as a weapon in his bid to overturn a legitimate election.
It might be difficult for some to believe, but the country would be better served by Barr remaining as attorney general through the end of Trump’s term. Barr’s replacement could be much worse for the country on the issue of Trump’s effort to overturn the election, and the United States would be better served by having an attorney general who won’t participate in Trump’s election fraud conspiracy theories.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
