(Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
I think it’s time to stop the tweeting about Department of Justice criminal cases.
I’m not going to be bullied or influenced by anybody … whether it’s Congress, a newspaper editorial board, or the president. I’m gonna do what I think is right. And you know … I cannot do my job here at the department with a constant background commentary that undercuts me.
— Attorney General Bill Barr, in comments given during an interview with ABC News, about President Donald Trump’s constant Twitter critiques about the way the Department of Justice is operating. Barr went on to state that Trump’s tweets “make it impossible for me to do my job and to assure the courts and the prosecutors in the department that we’re doing our work with integrity.” For what it’s worth, Barr claims Trump has “never asked me to do anything in a criminal case.”
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.