SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Attorney General William Barr listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office before signing an executive order on May 28, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Doug MIlls-Pool/Getty Images)
Barr Agrees to Testify on Politicization of DOJ as Judiciary Chairman Slams Attorney General as Trump's "Fixer"
A Justice Department spokesperson said the attorney general will testify before the House Judiciary Committee on July 28.
Jun 24, 2020
Attorney General William Barr agreed on Wednesday to testify before the House Judiciary Committee in July as the panel continues to investigate whether the U.S. Department of Justice has been politicized under the Trump administration.
Days after committee chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said he would soon issue a subpoena to Barr, a spokesperson for the DOJ said Barr would accept an invitation to testify on July 28.
\u201cThe Attorney General has accepted an invitation to appear before the House Judiciary Committee for a general oversight hearing on July 28th.\u201d— Kerri Kupec DOJ (@Kerri Kupec DOJ) 1593016030
The announcement came as a career prosecutor at the DOJ, Aaron Zelinsky, testified about the special treatment afforded to President Donald Trump's associate, Roger Stone, before his sentencing for obstructing the House investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign's coordination with Russia.
Barr declined to testify about Robert Mueller's report on the 2016 campaign, and has been strongly rebuked in recent days after he moved to dismiss Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Berman had investigated Deutsche Bank, the president's longtime creditor, as well as former New York Mayor and Trump associate Rudy Guiliani.
When opening Wednesday's Judiciary Committee hearing featuring Zelinski's testimony, Nadler referred to Barr as the president's "fixer."
Journalist Marcy Wheeler noted that while Barr has agreed to testify, the attorney general has backed out of planned appearances before lawmakers before.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Attorney General William Barr agreed on Wednesday to testify before the House Judiciary Committee in July as the panel continues to investigate whether the U.S. Department of Justice has been politicized under the Trump administration.
Days after committee chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said he would soon issue a subpoena to Barr, a spokesperson for the DOJ said Barr would accept an invitation to testify on July 28.
\u201cThe Attorney General has accepted an invitation to appear before the House Judiciary Committee for a general oversight hearing on July 28th.\u201d— Kerri Kupec DOJ (@Kerri Kupec DOJ) 1593016030
The announcement came as a career prosecutor at the DOJ, Aaron Zelinsky, testified about the special treatment afforded to President Donald Trump's associate, Roger Stone, before his sentencing for obstructing the House investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign's coordination with Russia.
Barr declined to testify about Robert Mueller's report on the 2016 campaign, and has been strongly rebuked in recent days after he moved to dismiss Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Berman had investigated Deutsche Bank, the president's longtime creditor, as well as former New York Mayor and Trump associate Rudy Guiliani.
When opening Wednesday's Judiciary Committee hearing featuring Zelinski's testimony, Nadler referred to Barr as the president's "fixer."
Journalist Marcy Wheeler noted that while Barr has agreed to testify, the attorney general has backed out of planned appearances before lawmakers before.
Attorney General William Barr agreed on Wednesday to testify before the House Judiciary Committee in July as the panel continues to investigate whether the U.S. Department of Justice has been politicized under the Trump administration.
Days after committee chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said he would soon issue a subpoena to Barr, a spokesperson for the DOJ said Barr would accept an invitation to testify on July 28.
\u201cThe Attorney General has accepted an invitation to appear before the House Judiciary Committee for a general oversight hearing on July 28th.\u201d— Kerri Kupec DOJ (@Kerri Kupec DOJ) 1593016030
The announcement came as a career prosecutor at the DOJ, Aaron Zelinsky, testified about the special treatment afforded to President Donald Trump's associate, Roger Stone, before his sentencing for obstructing the House investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign's coordination with Russia.
Barr declined to testify about Robert Mueller's report on the 2016 campaign, and has been strongly rebuked in recent days after he moved to dismiss Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Berman had investigated Deutsche Bank, the president's longtime creditor, as well as former New York Mayor and Trump associate Rudy Guiliani.
When opening Wednesday's Judiciary Committee hearing featuring Zelinski's testimony, Nadler referred to Barr as the president's "fixer."
Journalist Marcy Wheeler noted that while Barr has agreed to testify, the attorney general has backed out of planned appearances before lawmakers before.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.