Barr agrees to testify as Democrats question his leadership

Attorney General William Barr has decided to testify prior to the House Judiciary Committee the following month, appearing for the first time before the panel as questions swirl about whether he intervened regarding a longtime ally of President Donald Trump.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., released a letter Wednesday to Barr “to verify your agreement to testify” on March 31. In the letter, Nadler and committee Democrats write they have concerns that Barr has misused the criminal justice system for political purposes.

“In your tenure as lawyer general, you have engaged in a pattern of conduct in legal matters associated with the president that raises significant concerns because of this committee,” Nadler and the Democrats wrote.

The Justice Department confirmed Barr would testify. His appearance is definitely the first prior to the House Judiciary panel since he became attorney general this past year, and since he declined an invitation to testify about special counsel Robert Mueller’s report after it was released.

The Democrats said they intend to ask Barr about the department’s decision this week to overrule four federal prosecutors and lower the volume of prison time it could look for Trump’s confidant Roger Stone. The four prosecutors immediately quit the case, in which Stone was convicted of lying to Congress, witness tampering and obstructing the House investigation into if the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia to tip the 2016 election.

They said they'll also ask Barr about his department's announcement that it's taking information that Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani is gathering in Ukraine about the president’s Democratic rival Joe Biden and his son. The House voted in December to impeach Trump as a result of his pressure on Ukraine to research Democrats; the GOP-led Senate acquitted him this month.

“During the past week alone, you took steps that raise grave questions about your leadership,” the Democrats wrote.

After the department indicated it would overrule the prosecutors, Trump tweeted congratulations to Barr “for taking charge of a case that was totally out of control and perhaps shouldn't have been brought," suggesting the prosecutors had gone rogue.

The department insisted the decision to undo the sentencing recommendation was made Monday night, before Trump began tweeting about it, and that prosecutors hadn't spoken to the White House about it.

The Senate has displayed less interest in grilling Barr on the Stone episode, defending the department's decision to reduce the sentence and saying they didn't be prepared to call him specifically to discuss it.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Wednesday that he previously spoken to the Justice Department and was told that their sentencing guidelines demand three and a half or four . 5 years, rather than the seven to nine years the prosecutors had recommended.

“I don't think anybody should tweet about a continuing case, but having said that, I appreciate the Department of Justice ensuring their advice to the court are to get justice for the law as it's written,” Graham said.