The Washington Post says William Barr just 'lit his reputation on fire.' Democrats are calling Barr 'chicken.'

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"Attorney General William P. Barr entered office with more credibility than many Trump appointees," The Washington Post said in an editorial Wednesday night. "Mr. Barr avowed loyalty to the Justice Department's mission and, nearing the end of his career, seemed to have little incentive to serve as another Trump sycophant. Yet Mr. Barr has lit his reputation on fire, and he just added more fuel during his Wednesday testimony before a Senate panel."

Barr's explanations for his "highly misleading representation" and "manipulation" of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's findings don't add up, the Post writes, and "it is long past time the public stopped hearing Mr. Barr's views on how Mr. Mueller feels, and heard from the special counsel himself."

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Other House Judiciary Committee Democrats joined in the needling. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said on Twitter he's "not surprised #Barr is scared" of testifying "after his terrible performance" Wednesday in the Senate. "I'm thinking that after we subpoena chicken Barr and force him to testify," he added, "I'm going to invite Sen. Kamala Harris to the hearing and then I'm going to yield my time to her." Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) started the "chicken" thing Monday:

Barr is officially balking because Nadler wants staff lawyers to ask questions. That's an unusual arrangement but not unprecedented. You can read W. Neil Eggleston's account of being on both sides of those questions at Slate.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.