Page 2 - Cannot Obstruct News Today

William barr will promise that he will let the mueller probe go forward and that he will be transparent. barr will also explain why he wrote that 19 page memo to the justice department that many have read as barr concluding that the president cannot obstruct justice by firing the fbi director, but barr will tell senators that he often weighs in on legal issues of public importance and that his ultimate conclusion was not that the president cant obstruct justice, but the question is whether that ...

Ckamala harris and cory booker. >> lindsey graham becomes chairman and marsha blackburnjo first women. here is jessica schneider. >> reporter: a big day on capitol hill that will likely be quite contentious as the presidents pick for attorney general faces the senate judiciary committee. william barr will promise that he will let the mueller probe go forward and that he will be transparent. barr will also explain why he wrote that 19 page memo to the justice department that many have read as bar...

The president cannot obstruct himself. im struck by the fact that the presidents legal team seemed to not see the friday idea that obstruction and collusion can be one in the same. they did not see this theory coming. does this mean the president has not been a good client to the lawyers? thats the part that has me scratching my head. bill barr went down this road and they all assumed it was one thing. its almost like uh oh. its not that at all. >> right. i dont think the president has been a ve...

Should and will it because of the political optics the left may want to use to their advantage? >> know and know. i have read the wall street journal account. i havent read the memo, it is not yet public but i agree with everything i read in the account, making the same argument i have been making for over a year, namely the president cannot obstruct justice simply by exercising his authority under article 2. he would have to obstruct justice by witnesses, destroy evidence, do what richard nixon...

They left may want to use to their advantage? >> no and no. i have read "the wall street journal" count. i have read the memo, -- i havent read the memo, selected public. but i agree, with every thing ive read in the account, he is making the same argument i have been making now for over a year, namely, the president cannot obstruct justice assembly by exercising his authority. he would have to bribe witnesses, do what richard nixon did, that is exactly the argument ive been making. not surprisi...

Have a lorry. the other side cant be told. theres no counter to what the government is doing. so they will have a big hurdle i think to get over to even allow the information thats in front of a grand jury to get to the american people by way of mr. rosenstein because that is a miscarriage of justice. what else? obstruction of justice. im going through what theyve been arguing. the president cannot obstruct justice for firing a subordinate, period. now what about this new thing theyve come up, c...

Strongly signaling at least they feel, if they dont have insider information, that a pardon is likely. on the legal risk here, though, that his legal advisers would raise, is that if you pardon someone during an ongoing investigation, that could look like obstruction of justice or trying to interfere with an ongoing investigation. but at the same time, the presidents lawyers are making a case that the president cannot obstruct justice, that he has the presidential power under article ii to pardo...

That trump is not a target, that hes not going down the road, that even if he is still wrapping up his probe that he feels he had a duty to tell the country the president is no longer a target so people can start to move on. >> laura: andy, they said this is where they are looking over tweets, it is like the dread. its ridiculous. im sorry. now we are in tweets? interviews? its public staff. how are you obstructing an investigation with public comments? i am not following that. i guess its possi...

I wish if mueller has decided that trump is not a target, that hes not going down the road, that even if he is still wrapping up his probe that he feels he had a duty to tell the country the president is no longer a target so people can start to move on. >> laura: andy, they said this is where they are looking over tweets, it is like the dread to. its ridiculous. im sorry. now we are in tweets? interviews? its public staff. how are you obstructing an investigation with public comments? i am not ...

Firing james comey as fbi director that could be determined to be an act of obstruction of justice, i gather you agree with the presidents lawyers, why? >> i agree with the presidents lawyers. made the same case you last december. its simple. its not that the president cannot obstruct justice, while the president is commercing core constitutional powers of his office, like firing people, hiring people, pardoning people, telling people what to do, he cannot possibly be engaged in obstruction beca...