William Barr
Photographer: Michael Reynolds / EPA / Bloomberg
Photographer: Michael Reynolds / EPA / Bloomberg
President Donald Trump again asked for special advice to investigate election fraud – making the demand on Attorney General William Barr’s last day in office.
“After seeing the huge voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, I disagree with anyone who thinks that a strong, fast and fair Special Council is not needed, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump tweeted on Wednesday night. “This was the most corrupt election in the history of our country and it must be examined closely!”
The tweet, like many that Trump posted about the 2020 vote, contained a Twitter warning: “This allegation of electoral fraud is disputed.”
Barr, who has been a loyal supporter of Trump since taking office last year, said this week he saw no reason to appoint a special lawyer to investigate allegations of electoral fraud, reiterating an earlier statement that there is no evidence of fraud widespread that could undo Joe Biden’s victory.
“If I thought that special advice at this stage was the right and appropriate tool, I would quote one, but I didn’t and I won’t,” Barr said on Monday.
Wednesday was Barr’s last day at the Justice Department. He delivered a letter to Trump last week saying he was stepping down and, at the time, was praised by the president.
But Trump’s tweet on Wednesday night is a sign that Barr’s replacement, deputy attorney general Jeffrey Rosen, will be under pressure to obey the president’s will before his term ends on January 20.
Previously: Barr despises Trump’s demands, sees no advice in Biden Case
Trump, who continues to deny his loss even after the Electoral College last week confirmed that Biden had won, turned to an ever-smaller circle of advisers who discussed ideas, like seizing electronic voting machines, which even longtime confidants rejected as extremists.
The president has sometimes suggested that Sidney Powell, a lawyer who has filed several unsuccessful lawsuits on behalf of his campaign, should be appointed as a special lawyer, according to a person familiar with the conversation who asked to remain anonymous to describe the internal discussion.
Any effort to proceed with putting Powell in that position would raise questions about the legality of the president personally appointing a special adviser, a decision usually left to the attorney general.
Powell was rejected by the campaign last month after accusing elected Republican officials of being involved in a complicated plot to alter election results.
Further frustrating the president this week were Barr’s comments that he saw no reason to appoint a special lawyer to oversee an investigation of Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. Department of Justice prosecutors investigating Biden are handling the case “responsibly,” Barr said.
– With the help of Chris Strohm and Justin Sink