In memo, Trump's AG pick criticised aspect of Mueller probe

President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general, William Barr, sent an unsolicited memo to the Justice Department this year criticising as "fatally misconceived" the special counsel's investigation into whether the president took steps to obstruct a probe into ties between his campaign and Russia.

The 20-page memo, sent in June while Barr was in private practice and months before he was selected by Trump for the Justice Department job, could factor into his future confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee and may prompt questions about his ability to oversee the special counsel's investigation in an open-minded and impartial manner.

The document argues that there could be disastrous consequences for the Justice Department and the presidency if special counsel Robert Mueller were to conclude that acts a president is legally permitted to take such as firing an FBI director could constitute obstruction just because someone concludes that there was corrupt intent.

"Mueller should not be permitted to demand that the President submit to interrogation about alleged obstruction," Barr wrote. "Apart from whether Mueller (has) a strong enough factual basis for doing so, Mueller's obstruction theory is fatally misconceived."
Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said Barr's views were based solely on publicly available information and were expressed "on his own initiative."
In the memo, Barr says he is writing "as a former official deeply concerned with the institutions of the Presidency and the Department of Justice."
He acknowledged that he was "in the dark about many facts."