> Barr is a longtime proponent of the unitary executive theory of nearly unfettered presidential authority over the executive branch of the U.S. government.
> Barr as attorney general in 1992 authored the report The Case for More Incarceration, where he argued for an increase in the United States incarceration rate
> Having criticized the Mueller investigation before taking office, Barr did not recuse himself from overseeing the investigation as attorney general. After receiving Mueller's report he issued a four-page letter to Congress, describing what he said were its principal conclusions, and adding his opinion that the evidence presented did not establish obstruction of justice by Trump. Special counsel Mueller privately responded that Barr's letter had misrepresented the report.
> Barr intervened in the criminal case against convicted Trump associate Roger Stone, recommending a lighter sentence for Stone than the career prosecutors who had worked on the case. In May 2020, the Justice Department under Barr announced the dropping of charges against ex-Trump adviser Michael Flynn despite an earlier guilty plea by Flynn, which he later filed to withdraw.
So yeah, he's a hatchet man for the president, through and through. This is just revenge for tech's left leaning donations and stance, at the bidding of Trump of course. Big tech has long been in the sights of conservatives and this is just another shot in what's been a growing conflict.
As someone who is on the liberal side on incarceration issues: what does arguing in favor of higher incarceration rights have to do with being a “hatchet man” for the President? Especially when the President in question has made strides in reducing mass incarceration that even Vox had to admit were extremely significant: https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2018/12/18/18140973/state... (
Bush senior was big on incarceration and the war on drugs was a central tenant of his platform. It's pointing out that he [Barr] has a long history of doing what the President wants for political purposes.
Is it? Or is it evidence that Barr is a traditional, religious, law-and-order conservative, writing at a time when law and order was in vogue even among Democrats? It should be noted that in 1992, the increase in crime rates compared to 1960 was still significantly larger than the increase in incarceration rates over that same period. (In 1992, crime rates had increased by a factor of 5x, while incarceration had increased by a factor of 3x.)
Likewise for your point that Barr endorses a theory a unitary executive. So do many people. What does that prove? It’s not a controversial idea. The very first sentence of Article II of the United States Constitution says: “The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.” It doesn’t even say something like “there shall be an executive branch and the President shall be in charge of it.” It vests the executive Power (capitalization in original) in a single person. Article I and Article III, by contrast, “vest” the legislative and judicial powers in institutions (Congress, and the Supreme Court). The choice of phrasing appears pretty deliberate. And notably absent from Article II is any mention of career bureaucrats who can exercise the executive Power" of the United States independently of the person in whom that Power is vested.
Yes. Barr was well known as a controversial politician even in those times. You can find numerous news reports affirming this. His entire political career is one giant walking controversy. While I agree that his words and opinions were more mainstream at the time, he was at the storm of more than a few scandals. Iran contra pardons are another obvious one.
> "{Are his actions} politically motivated? {Or} self-serving? I'm asking myself those same questions," said one key Justice Department official
> Much of what Barr has done since his confirmation seems to benefit the administration politically. He pleased conservatives by reversing policy and offering Justice Department help to states that want to get out from under court-ordered prison population caps.
> Barr is a longtime proponent of the unitary executive theory of nearly unfettered presidential authority over the executive branch of the U.S. government.
> Barr as attorney general in 1992 authored the report The Case for More Incarceration, where he argued for an increase in the United States incarceration rate
> Having criticized the Mueller investigation before taking office, Barr did not recuse himself from overseeing the investigation as attorney general. After receiving Mueller's report he issued a four-page letter to Congress, describing what he said were its principal conclusions, and adding his opinion that the evidence presented did not establish obstruction of justice by Trump. Special counsel Mueller privately responded that Barr's letter had misrepresented the report.
> Barr intervened in the criminal case against convicted Trump associate Roger Stone, recommending a lighter sentence for Stone than the career prosecutors who had worked on the case. In May 2020, the Justice Department under Barr announced the dropping of charges against ex-Trump adviser Michael Flynn despite an earlier guilty plea by Flynn, which he later filed to withdraw.
So yeah, he's a hatchet man for the president, through and through. This is just revenge for tech's left leaning donations and stance, at the bidding of Trump of course. Big tech has long been in the sights of conservatives and this is just another shot in what's been a growing conflict.