Attorney General William Barr claimed that the Obama administration and the FBI were spying on Trump and were more of a threat than Russia.
Barr said during an interview with NBC News:
I think probably from a civil liberties standpoint, the greatest danger to our free system is that the incumbent government use the apparatus of the state, principally, the law enforcement agencies and the intelligence agencies, both to spy on political opponents. But as to use them in a way that could affect the outcome of the election. As far as I’m aware, this is the first time in history that this has been done to a presidential campaign.
The use of these counterintelligence techniques against a presidential campaign. And we have to remember, in today’s world, presidential campaigns are frequently in contact with foreign persons. And indeed, in most campaigns, there are signs of illegal foreign money coming in. And we don’t automatically assume that the campaigns are and traitors and acting with foreign powers. There has to be some basis before we use these very potent powers in our core first amendment activity. And here, I felt this was very flimsy. Basically, I think the department has a rule of reason which is at the end of the day, is what you’re relying on sufficiently powerful to justify the techniques you’re using.
Video:
William Barr argues that Obama and the FBI posed a greater threat to democracy than Russia. pic.twitter.com/OohoohKhUt
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) December 10, 2019
According to Barr, the problem isn’t Russia trying to destroy US democracy through corrupting our elections. The real problem was Barack Obama and the FBI. Obama and the FBI didn’t spy on Trump. They work against Trump or try to stop him from winning the election.
The Attorney General was spreading false information and conspiracy theories.
Barr’s attitude is reflective of the mentality of the Republican Party. Democrats are a bigger threat to America than Russia.
This belief is why Republicans are happy to take Russian help in elections and look the other way to protect their compromised president because to them, the only real threat is the Democratic Party.
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Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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