Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., on Thursday ripped Democrats for their approach to a House Judiciary Committee hearing on special counsel Robert Mueller’s report that Attorney General William Barr declined to show up for, and more broadly, their continued investigation of President Trump on Russian collusion.
“If I were Trump I would fight them,” Graham said. “I don’t think this is oversight. This is trying to destroy him and his family. Oversight is to hold the executive branch accountable, not to retry the election.”
Graham’s comments came less than an hour after Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., the House Judiciary Committee chairman, told reporters he would make one last “good faith” attempt at negotiating with Barr on terms under which he could testify before the committee about his handling of Mueller’s report.
Democrats demanded staff lawyers be allowed to question Barr, which he refused, and cited as the basis for his no-show Thursday.
“I said before if a staff member wants to ask questions, run for Congress. Put a pin on, find a committee,” said Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., the ranking member on the panel.
[Read more: Ted Cruz praises William Barr for subjecting himself to ‘the Kavanaugh treatment’]
.@LindseyGrahamSC blasts House Dems over this morning’s hearing about Bill Barr.
“If I were Trump I would fight them. I don’t think this is oversight. This is trying to destroy him and his family. Oversight is to hold the executive branch accountable, not to retry the election.” pic.twitter.com/zBgjIVCmu5
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) May 2, 2019
Democrats in both chambers have alleged Barr is acting more as Trump’s lawyer rather than the American people’s.
Graham, who on Wednesday led a contentious Senate Judiciary hearing on the Mueller report, emphasized Barr’s legal credentials and said the document was commissioned in an ethical and responsible way.
“I think after Mueller is the definitive word for me,” Graham said Thursday.
The debate over Barr’s impartiality comes amid a wave of subpoenas issued by congressional Democrats concerning data related to Trump’s 2016 campaign and personal finances.
House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings, D-Md., filed a congressional subpoena to obtain the president’s financial records, prompting Trump to sue in a bid to block it.
Separately, Nadler issued his own subpoena for the full, unredacted Mueller report, which Barr has not responded to.
“You can’t ask for somebody’s tax returns just because you want them,” Graham said. “You have to have a reason.”
