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Barr condemns Trump: "Orchestrating a mob to pressure Congress is inexcusable"

Attorney General Bill Barr at a press briefing on Dec. 21. Photo: Michael Reynolds/pool/AFP via Getty Images

Former Attorney General Bill Barr said in a statement to the AP on Thursday that President Trump's incitement of a march by his supporters on the U.S. Capitol was a "betrayal of his office."

Why it matters: As one of the most loyal members of Trump's Cabinet, Barr backed the president through some of the most high-stakes controversies of his tenure, including the use of force against protesters steps away from the White House and his impeachment proceedings for abuse of power.

  • Barr resigned last month after tensions boiled over with Trump, who had grown angry with him over his refusal to declare widespread voter fraud in the election and expedite the release of the Durham report.
  • In his last press conference before departing the Justice Department, Barr contradicted Trump repeatedly on questions about Hunter Biden, voting machines and Russia's hack of the U.S. government.

What he's saying: Barr told the AP that “orchestrating a mob to pressure Congress is inexcusable."

Flashback: In response to the siege, which led to over a dozen arrests and several deaths reported by D.C. police, Trump urged his supporters "to go home" in a video roughly two hours after the incident began.

  • "We love you. You're very special. ... I know how you feel. But go home, and go home in peace," Trump said, after repeating false claims that the election was stolen from him.

Go deeper

Jonathan Swan, Zachary Basu
18 hours ago - Politics & Policy
Off the Rails

Episode 6: Last stand in Georgia

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Drew Angerer, Raymond Boyd/Getty Images

Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. Axios takes you inside the collapse of a president with a special series.

Episode 6: Georgia had not backed a Democratic presidential candidate since 1992 and Donald Trump's defeat in this Deep South stronghold, and his reaction to that loss, would help cost Republicans the U.S. Senate as well. Georgia was Trump's last stand.

On Air Force One, President Trump was in a mood. He had been clear he did not want to return to Georgia, and yet somehow he'd been conscripted into another rally on the night of Jan. 4.

Go deeper (4 min. read)Arrow
Jonathan Swan, Zachary Basu
Jan 17, 2021 - Politics & Policy
Off the Rails

Episode 3: Descent into madness ... Trump: "Sometimes you need a little crazy"

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. This Axios series takes you inside the collapse of a president.

Episode 3: The conspiracy goes too far. Trump's outside lawyers plot to seize voting machines and spin theories about communists, spies and computer software.

President Trump was sitting in the Oval Office one day in late November when a call came in from lawyer Sidney Powell. "Ugh, Sidney," he told the staff in the room before he picked up. "She's getting a little crazy, isn't she? She's really gotta tone it down. No one believes this stuff. It's just too much."

Go deeper (6 min. read)Arrow
Ursula Perano
11 hours ago - Politics & Policy

McConnell: Trump "provoked" Capitol mob

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Tuesday that the pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was "provoked by the president and other powerful people."

Why it matters: Trump was impeached by the House last week for "incitement of insurrection." McConnell has not said how he will vote in Trump's coming Senate impeachment trial, but sources told Axios' Mike Allen that the chances of him voting to convict are higher than 50%.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow