William Barr confirmation hearing - LIVE: Trump's attorney general nominee grilled by Senate over Mueller investigation
Mr Barr says he does not believe specal counsel Robert Mueller would be 'involved in a witch hunt'
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Donald Trump‘s nominee to become attorney general has said that special counsel Robert Mueller will be allowed to complete his Russia probe as his confirmation hearing opened in Washington.
William Barr, who is facing questions from the Senate, has said he doees not believe Mr Mueller would be involved in a witch hunt and that his predecessor Jeff Sessions “did the right thing” in recusing himself from overseeing the investigation.
Mr Barr will have to navigate his confirmation hearing skillfully, emphasising his support for Mr Trump’s hardline immigration policies while assuring Democrats he will not respect mr Mueller’s independence.
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William Barr has continued to defend Robert Mueller, responding to a question about Donald Trump’s frequent attacks on the special counsel investigation by saying, “I don’t believe Mr Mueller would be involved in a witch hunt.”
Lindsay Graham asked William Barr his thoughts on Donald Trump with a somewhat off-kilter question: “Don’t you think Trump is a one-pager kind of a guy?”
“I suspect he is,” Mr Barr responded.
“Just remember that,” Mr Graham said. Mr Barr let out a laugh and continued speaking.
Barr acknowledged Jeff Sessions’ recusal from the Russia probe, saying he did the right thing. He also admit to being “shocked” when he read text messages between ex-FBI agents Peter Strzok and Lisa Page.
He also said he had a very high opinion of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
Dianne Feinstein has begun her questioning, asking William Barr is he will commit to making Mueller’s findings public.
He responded by saying he would make sure they’re made public. He also said he was not actually sure about Mueller’s views and interpretations of 1512, telling the senator, “I thought that was one of the theories being considered. As a short hand way in the memo, I referred to it as Mueller's theory.”
William Barr said he “did not recall” receiving any confidential or nonpublic information surrounding Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian impact in the 2016 election.
William Barr has admit he has not actually looked into the text of the emoluments clause.
"I have not personally researched the emoluments clause,” he said. “I couldn't even tell you what it says."
“In my opinion, if any president attempts to intervene in a matter he has a stake in wants to protect himself than that's a breach of his constitutional duties," Barr continued.
Dianne Feinstein asked William Barr if she believed it would prohibited for the president to halt the Russia investigation.
"I think it would be a breach to the president's duties... I certainly think it would be an abuse of his power," Barr said.
She also asked, “According to news reports, Trump interviewed you and asked you to be part of his legal team, is that correct?"
"No, I had one conversation with him, that was in June 2017. I only met him before I talked to him about the job of attorney general,” he responded.
Senator Chuck Grassley has begun his questioning, demanding taxpayers have the right to know where there money is being spent in the special counsel’s investigation.
He then pressed William Barr on the False Claims Act, which Barr had previously described as “an abomination.”
Barr has said he will “diligently enforce” the False Claims Act.
Chuck Grassley said he had not yet heard back from the Justice Department regarding a letter he sent discussing the probe into Hillary Clinton. He pressed William Barr on whether he would be able to effectively communicate with the department under his leadership.
Barr said he would have a good approach to working with senators and would reply to their messages. Grassley said he expects Barr to respond to the previous unanswered letter he sent.
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