NYC Bar Association Urges Congress To Investigate AG Barr For Partisanship
JakeThomas
On Thursday, the New York City Bar Association sent a letter to Congress urging the governing body to investigate Attorney General William Barr for what it described as a “pattern of conduct” that “threatens public confidence in the fair and impartial administration of justice,” according to Axios.
This marks the first time that a bar association has requested an investigation into a sitting attorney general, the news outlet noted.
In its letter, the bar association’s president was critical of Barr’s public statements, accusing the attorney general of disregarding "bedrock obligations for government lawyers,” including the duty to “to avoid even the appearance of partiality and impropriety, and to avoid manifesting bias, prejudice, or partisanship in the exercise of official responsibilities."
Flagged in the letter was Barr’s speech before the Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention last fall, where he said "so-called progressives" were "engaged in a war to cripple by any means necessary a duly elected government."
He also said during the speech that conservatives “tend to have more scruple over their political tactics” and show greater commitment to the rule of law than their liberal counterparts.