William Barr is in.
The former Attorney General under George H.W. Bush has been confirmed by the Senate to the same position in the President Donald Trump’s administration. Barr received the nod after a resounding 55 to 44 vote, in which Sen. Rand Paul R-Ky., was the only Republican to vote against him.
Though only three Democrats supported Barr to become the next attorney general—Sens. Doug Jones Ala., Joe Manchin W.Va. and Kyrsten Sinema Ariz.—the Justice Department veteran represents a commitment to bipartisanship.
His track record can boast it.
He received a unanimous decision under George H.W. Bush.
He’s now in the midst of a political tsunami, overseeing the Robert Mueller investigation, the special counsel probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Fortunately for Barr, the investigation is reportedly coming to a close very soon and the evidence of so-called collusion seems it will be lacking.
If Mueller were to find anything of substance, Barr job would boil down to what message he relays to the public.
Democrats are furious over this.
Far-left radicals are threatened by Barr’s reputation on criminal justice legislature. Before his nomination, Barr questioned Mueller’s opening of the President Trump investigation. They’re also nerved that he’s made no promises to release Mueller’s report—when it is released—in full, or report the changes he will have made.
“I have serious doubts about this nominee’s independence and willingness to stand up for rule of law,” Sen. Mark R. Warner D-Va. said. “To me, Mr. Barr’s unsolicited memo looks much like a job application to try to appeal to the president on those qualifications.”
Republicans stood up for the newly elected attorney general, with Lindsey Graham R-S.C. saying, “If you think William P. Barr has been auditioning for this job, you really haven’t been paying much attention to how this whole thing came out. Mr. Barr will make sure Mr. Mueller can finish his job without political interference. He said that, I believe that—that’s the way this movie has to end.”
—The Horn editorial team