10 things you need to know today: February 14, 2020

Attorney general says Trump's tweets make his job impossible, the Pentagon diverts $3.8 billion for Trump's wall, and more 

William Barr during a press conference
(Image credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

1. Barr: Trump's tweets 'make it impossible for me to do my job'

Attorney General William Barr said Thursday that President Trump's tweets attacking Justice Department personnel and commenting on pending cases had made it "impossible for me to do my job." The comments, unexpected from such a strong Trump ally, came after the president slammed prosecutors for recommending a sentence of up to nine years for Trump ally Roger Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress and witness tampering. Trump's broadside came shortly before Justice Department leaders overruled the prosecutors, saying they would push for a lighter sentence. Democrats have demanded an investigation into whether Trump improperly influenced the case. Barr acknowledged in an interview with ABC News that the timing looked bad, but said: "I'm not going to be bullied or influenced by anybody."

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.