US A-G may quit over Trump's tweeting about the Justice Department

William Barr is growing increasingly exasperated with the president commenting on ongoing Justice Department investigations on the social media platform.

FEBRUARY 19, 2020 19:14

U.S. President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr participate in a presentation ceremony of the Medal of Valor and heroic commendations to civilians and police officers who responded to mass shootingsin Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House (photo credit: ERIN SCOTT/REUTERS) — U.S. President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr participate in a presentation ceremony of the Medal of Valor and heroic commendations to civilians and police officers who responded to mass shootingsin Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House

(photo credit: ERIN SCOTT/REUTERS)

America's Attorney General, William P. Barr, has told people close to US President Donald Trump that he may quit if the president doesn't stop tweeting about Justice Department investigations, sources have told the Washington Post.

On Tuesday morning Trump published two threads on Twitter regarding the special council investigation into his 2016 presidential campaign. In the first he quoted Judge Andrew Napolitano who told Fox News that Roger Stone, a former advisor convicted of lying to Congress in that investigation, deserved a new trial.

.....would order a new trial, I’m not so sure about Judge Jackson, I don’t know.” @Judgenap (Andrew Napolitano) @foxandfriends
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 18, 2020

In the other, he said: "Everything having to do with this fraudulent investigation is badly tainted and, in my opinion, should be thrown out," before going on to suggest that if we weren't president, he would be inclined to sue.

....badly tainted and, in my opinion, should be thrown out. Even Mueller’s statement to Congress that he did not see me to become the FBI Director (again), has been proven false. The whole deal was a total SCAM. If I wasn’t President, I’d be suing everyone all over the place...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 18, 2020

Hours later, according to the Post, a Justice Department official revealed that a sealed motion had already been filed in court arguing the opposite.

“He [Barr] has his limits,” one person close to the Attorney General told the Post, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Insiders have said that Barr has made a number of requests, both private and public, for the president to stop tweeting on the subject of federal law enforcement, although it is not known whether any of those requests were directly addressed to Trump. Sources within the administration told the Post that Barr appeared to be making his feelings known to those around the president, in the hope that the message would filter back.

However, following publication of Barr's intention to quit in the Post, others have stepped forward to deny it. Kerri Kupec, a spokeswoman for Barr, tweeted: “Addressing Beltway rumors: The Attorney General has no plans to resign.”

Others close to Barr told the Post that he was unlikely to make a hasty decision.

The revelations follow an incident last week, in which prosecutors on the Stone case filed a recommendation to the court that it hand down a seven-to-nine year prison sentence for his conviction on charges of obstruction of Congress and witness tampering. Hours after Trump denounced the move, the Justice Department filed a softer recommendation. The four prosecutors who filed the intial recommendation subsequently quit the case, with one leaving the government entirely.

On Thursday, Barr said the plan to soften the sentencing recommendation was in place before Trump issued his tweet, but added that the timing made his department look bad.

In an interview with ABC News, he said: “I think it’s time to stop the tweeting about Department of Justice criminal cases.”

Such statements “about the department, about people in the department, our men and women here, about cases pending here, and about judges before whom we have cases, make it impossible for me to do my job and to assure the courts and the prosecutors and the department that we’re doing our work with integrity,” he said, adding “I cannot do my job here at the department with a constant background commentary that undercuts me.”

He was therefore being moved to speak out publicly, he said, because the president's missives via Twitter were giving people cause to doubt the department's integrity.

Over the weekend, more than 2,000 former justice department employees signed an open letter urging Barr to step down over his handling of the Stone case. One of the signatories, Jan Miller, who was the US attorney for central Illinois from 2002 until 2005, said he signed to give support to rank-and-file Justice Department employees.

“I’m sure it’s a very difficult time to be a line prosecutor in the department right now,” he said.

But others came to Barr's defense, including White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who downplayed the letter, and said there were "obstructionists all across this government who are working against the president."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY.) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey O. Graham (R-SC) also defended Barr in a joint statement, saying “We expect that, as always, efforts to intimidate the Attorney General will fall woefully short.”

On Tuesday, Trump said he had "total confidence" in Barr, adding “I do make his job harder.”

“The attorney general is a man with great integrity,” Trump said. “I chose not to be involved. I’m allowed to be involved. I could be involved if I want to be.”