[ad_1]
In a resignation letter posted by Trump on Twitter Monday night, Barr was said to leave office on December 23. Trump wrote on Twitter that Barr had done an “excellent job.” His deputy Jeff Rosen will take over the office. Trump had voiced harsh criticism of Barr last Saturday. The Wall Street Journal had previously reported that the attorney general had been aware of an investigation into the son of US President-elect Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, since the spring. Barr wanted to keep the investigation out of the election campaign, the newspaper said. “A huge disappointment!” Trump wrote. “Why didn’t Bill Barr reveal the truth about Hunter Biden to the public before the election?”
Republican Trump has yet to acknowledge Democrat Biden’s electoral victory and presents himself as the victim of massive electoral fraud. Neither he nor his lawyers have presented any credible evidence. Barr had also said he knew of no evidence of massive voter fraud. Trump continues his efforts to overturn the result with legal action despite dozens of setbacks in various state courts and in the Washington Supreme Court.
Hunter Biden announced last Wednesday that he was under federal investigation for “tax issues.” He was regularly targeted during the election campaign by Trump, who raised corruption allegations against the Biden family. The background for this is Hunter Biden’s questionable foreign business in Ukraine and China. Between 2014 and 2019 he held a lucrative position on the supervisory board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma. During his time as Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden was responsible for Ukraine.
Last Sunday, the New York Times and CNN reported that Barr was considering resigning before the end of the year. Trump had previously been publicly disappointed in the minister, who is actually considered his close ally. The reason for this was his statements in an interview in which he had commented on the result of the elections, which Trump had questioned. Barr said he has yet to see evidence of fraud to the extent that it could have led to a different election result.
Trump then left open whether he wanted to retain Barr and called the Justice Department a “disappointment.” When asked by a reporter if he still trusts Barr, Trump said, “Ask me that in a few weeks.” Trump had nominated the lawyer, born in 1950, as attorney general in December 2018 after former incumbent Jeff Sessions tendered his resignation at Trump’s request.
Barr (70) has proven to be very loyal to Trump since taking office and has also received regular praise from him. However, earlier in the year, there was tension between the two as Trump repeatedly commented on the ongoing legal proceedings via Twitter. At the time, the Justice Department rejected speculation about Barr’s alleged resignation plans.
