A Justice Department legal opinion says sitting presidents can not be indicted. "I thought he was unfit when he was appointed, I opposed him and now, clearly the Department of Justice needs new leadership", Blumenthal said.
In the letter, Mueller told Barr his message to Congress "did not fully capture the context, nature, and substance" of Mueller's views on obstruction of justice. The appearance is Barr's first since he released a redacted version of Mueller's report on April 18.
'Attorney General William Barr told the Senate Judiciary Committee that special counsel Robert Mueller did not take issue with the accuracy of Barr's set of principal conclusions on the Russian Federation report, but was frustrated "that the press reporting had been inaccurate".
The 400-page Special Counsel report, which was released two weeks ago, revealed President Trump was very concerned the appointment of Robert Mueller would severely hamper his ability to govern.
Mueller's report - the culmination of a probe that had haunted Trump since the start of his presidency - confirmed that Russian operatives tried to help Trump defeat his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, including by hacking into email accounts.
Barr said he did not want to put out pieces of the report, but rather issue the document all at once with redactions, and that he didn't want to change course, according to officials.
1 dead, 6 injured in Baltimore shooting
Harrison said the shooting appeared to be "extremely targeted" but he did not immediately elaborate on a possible motive. It was unclear whether the barbecues were related, Harrison said. "It wasn't anything dealing with the church".
Barr has testified to Congress previously that Mueller declined the opportunity to review his four-page memo to lawmakers that distilled the essence of the special counsel's findings. They've charged that he is acting as an attorney for Trump, not the attorney general of the whole United States. A live stream of the hearing will be available on the Senate Judiciary Committee's website here.
"This has been done", Barr said. Jerry Nadler, New York Democrat and House Judiciary Committee chairman, said in a statement. "The special counsel also found McGahn is a credible witness with no motives to lie or exaggerate, so what I'm asking you then is that a credible charge under the obstruction statute?" The questioning would come in addition to a traditional hearing that provides each Representative on the panel with five minutes of questions and comments. This flies in the face of hundreds of Trump tweets and statements baselessly accusing Mueller of running a biased witch hunt. Mueller said he had communicated the same concern two days earlier. Van Hollen said he understood, and, as Barr pledged to elaborate on his conclusion once the report was released, the senator asked, "Did Bob Mueller support your conclusion?"
Democratic lawmakers, already upset at Barr's handling of the report, reacted furiously, with Sen.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr testifies before a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the proposed budget estimates for the Department of Justice in Washington, U.S., April 10, 2019. The report added that Trump and McGahn spoke about the matter on February 6, 2018, days after "The New York Times" reported on Trump's demand. He repeatedly asserted his authority as attorney general to make the final determination about whether Trump obstructed justice. And, in a sign of broader reticence among some Democrats about embarking on an impeachment process, he said, "The House has so many questions before it". Democrats had rejected the offer as inadequate but Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell accepted.
Republicans, including Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, have questioned whether the Federal Bureau of Investigation overstepped its authority by monitoring Trump aides who were suspected of being potential Russian agents during the campaign.
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