Barr reportedly unlikely to name special counsel to investigate voter fraud, Hunter Biden
President Trump is reportedly interested in appointing a special counsel to investigate unfounded allegations of election fraud and Hunter Biden's business and financial dealings, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.
Trump has reportedly directed advisers to look for candidates, and he reportedly wants to act quickly as lawsuits brought by his presidential campaign and his allies have fizzled in courts at all levels.
Ultimately, though, the appointment of a special counsel would have to be made by Attorney General William Barr, and his associates told the Journal he's unlikely to name anyone to the post, especially after he tapped Connecticut U.S. Attorney John Durham to lead a separate investigation into the origins of the FBI's 2016 Russia investigation.
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The president already appears angry with Barr — the attorney general has recently said his department has found no evidence of widespread voter fraud, and he also prevented an existing federal investigation into Hunter Biden from being publicly exposed, which reportedly set Trump off at a meeting Friday. Trump continued to express his disappointment about the latter situation Saturday morning on Twitter, raising speculation about whether Barr's job is in jeopardy. Clashing with Trump over a special counsel appointment, if that turns out to be the case, could add to that uncertainty. Read more at The Wall Street Journal. Tim O'Donnell
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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