Pelosi accuses Barr of committing a crime by lying to Congress

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters during a press conference Thursday that Attorney General Bill Barr did not tell the truth during his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee — and "that's a crime."

"What is deadly serious about it is the attorney general of the United States of America was not telling the truth to the Congress of the United States. That's a crime. ... He lied to Congress. And if anybody else did that, it would be considered a crime. Nobody is above the law. Not the president of the United States, and not the attorney general."

The big picture: Politico reported earlier Thursday that Pelosi's accusation is a reference to Barr's response to Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.) during a hearing last month. Barr told Crist that he was not aware of concerns expressed by special counsel Robert Mueller's team about his characterization of the Mueller report, though it was later revealed that Mueller had sent Barr a letter on March 27 expressing his frustration.

• The Justice Department responded to Pelosi in a statement: "The baseless attack on the Attorney General is reckless, irresponsible and false."

Go deeper: House Democrats give Barr one more chance to turn over full Mueller report