Wyden calls on Attorney General Barr to resign

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, on Thursday called on Attorney General William Barr to resign.

“Attorney General William Barr yesterday continued his campaign of misinformation. I have warned for months that AG Barr was hired to protect Trump’s presidency at all costs and erode constitutional checks on the president’s power. That is why I strongly opposed his confirmation,” Wyden said.

“In his short time in office, AG Barr’s partisan lies and misrepresentations were far worse than even I had feared. Each day, William Barr remains in office taints every aspect of the Justice Department’s operations. He should resign,” Wyden said.

“The Attorney General called a probable cause search warrant on a Trump associate ‘spying.’ He said he always uses that word. But William Barr has testified that the president can go around the courts and the Congress in violation of the law. He didn’t call that “spying’; he called it “national security,” the senator continued.

“His lack of credibility, his partisan double standards, and his contempt for the rule of law make him unsuitable for every aspect of the job, but perhaps most especially his oversight of massive surveillance programs that scoop up vast amounts of Americans’ communications.

“William Barr’s shocking behavior in office further undermines the American people’s faith that the government can operate these surveillance programs within the bounds of the Constitution, and should weigh heavily on lawmakers considering renewing surveillance authorities,” Wyden concluded.

Wyden detailed additional concerns about Barr’s oversight of surveillance authorities Thursday on Twitter.