President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general strove at his confirmation Tuesday to assert his independence from the White House, saying he believed Russia had interfered with the 2016 presidential election, that a special counsel investigation shadowing Trump needs to move forward and that his predecessor made the correct call by recusing from the probe.

Those comments departed from Trump's own views and underscored Barr's efforts to reassure Democrats that he will not be a loyalist to a president who has appeared to demand it from law enforcement.

Trump has repeatedly castigated special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, calling it a "witch hunt," and lambasted and ultimately pushed out his first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, for his recusal because of his work with the campaign.

"I will not be bullied into doing anything that I think is wrong, whether it be by editorial boards, Congress or the president," Barr said.

Barr repeatedly praised Mueller, who has been investigating whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Kremlin to sway the election, and sought to provide assurance he would not undermine his work. He called him a friend of 30 years and saying he couldn't imagine that Mueller would do anything that would justify his firing.

Barr would oversee the final stages of the investigation, and said that though he would consult with ethics officials on whether he would need to recuse because of a critical unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year, the decision would be ultimately his.

He also disclosed having discussed Mueller with Trump during a meeting in 2017 when Barr declined to join his legal team.

Trump wanted to know what Mueller, who worked for Barr when he led the Justice Department between 1991 and 1993, was like.

Barr said he told Trump Mueller "is a straight shooter and should be dealt with as such."

The nominee also said former FBI Director James Comey made the wrong decision by holding a news conference announcing he wasn't recommending charges in the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

Barr said if authorities aren't going to bring charges, then there should not be a news conference to detail derogatory information uncovered during the probe. Comey has defended his decision.

"That's not the way the Department of Justice does business," Barr said.

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Wide side shot of Barr testifying at confirmation hearing

2. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I have a very good life. I love it, but I also want to help in this circumstance and I am not going to do anything that I think is wrong and I will not be bullied into doing anything I think is wrong by anybody, whether it be editorial boards or Congress or the president. I'm going to do what I think is right."

3. Cutaway of committee members

4. Cutaway of Sen. Lindsey Graham

5. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"It was a very brief meeting where essentially the president wanted to know, he said, 'Oh, you know Bob Mueller. How well do you know Bob Mueller?' And I told him how well I knew Bob Mueller and how you know the Barrs and Muellers were good friends and would be good friends when this is all over and so forth. And he was interested in that, wanted to know you know what I thought about, you know, Mueller's integrity and so forth and so on. And I said Bob is a, is a straight shooter and should be dealt with as such. And he said something to the effect like, 'So are you envisioning some role here?' And I said, 'No actually, Mr. President, right now I couldn't do it. You know, I just, my personal and my professional obligations are such that I'm unable to do it.' So he asked me for my phone number, I gave it to him and I never heard from him again until..."

6. Wide shot of hearing

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat, Vermont:

"So will you commit, if confirmed, to both seeking and following the advice of the department's career ethics officials on whether you must recuse from the special counsel's investigation?"

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I will seek the advice of the career ethics personnel. But under the regulations, I make the decision as the head of the agency as to my own recusal. So, I certainly would consult with them and at the end of the day, I would make a decision in good faith based on the laws and the facts that are evident at that time."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat, Vermont:

"Are there any circumstances that would cause you to terminate the investigation, a component of or significantly restricted funding?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Under the under the regulations, Bob Mueller could only be terminated for good cause and I frankly, it's unimaginable to me that Bob would ever do anything that gave rise to good cause. But in theory, if something happened that was good cause, for me it would actually take more than that, it would have to be pretty grave and the public interest would essentially have to compel it. Because I believe right now the overarching public interest is to allow him to finish."

11. Wide shot of hearing

12. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I think Jim Comey is, as I've said, is an extremely gifted man who's served the country with distinction in many roles. But I thought that to the extent he, he actually announced a decision, was wrong. And the other thing is if you're not going to indict someone then you don't stand up there and unload negative information about the person. That's not the way the Department of Justice does business."

13. Wide shot of hearing

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general continued efforts to distance himself from the president Tuesday as he testified before Senators at his confirmation hearing.

Under questioning by the Senate Judiciary Committee, William Barr said he would not "not carry out" any order to fire special counsel Robert Mueller without cause.

The comments were in response to a question from Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware.

Mueller's team is examining potential ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign. Barr said repeatedly Tuesday he wants Mueller to finish the investigation.

Trump's nominee was also asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is a friend or a foe to the United States.

Barr said while Russia is a "potent rival" of the U.S. with foreign policy objectives "usually at direct contrary," he minimized the threat from Moscow and said China, not Russia is the "primary rival" of the United States.

Throughout his testimony, Barr acknowledged Russian attempts to meddle in the 2016 election but said Russia "is half the size it was was" during the Cold War with an economy nowhere near the size of China's.

And he said he's concerned "that the fixation on Russia not obscure the danger from China."

On a separate topic, Barr told the committee he can't rule out jailing reporters for doing their jobs.

In  response to a question from Sen. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, Barr said that there are certain situations where a reporter could be held in contempt "as a last resort."

Barr said the situations he was envisioning would involve news organizations "putting out stuff that is hurting the country."

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Wide shot of William Barr sitting before the Senate Judiciary Committee as it returns from break

2. Wide cutaway of committee

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Coons, Democrat, Delaware:

"So most famously when directed by President Nixon to fire the special counsel the prosecutor investigating Watergate, Richardson refused and resigned instead as we all well know. If the president directed you to change those regulations and then fire Mueller or simply directly fire Mueller, would you follow Richardson's example and resign instead?"

4. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Assuming there was no good cause?

(Coons: Assuming no good cause.)

I would not carry out that instruction."

5. Cutaway of Coons

6. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"As I said, I'm going to carry out those regulations and I want him to finish this investigation."

7. Wide shot of hearing

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Well I don't hold myself out as a foreign policy expert but I think that he is, I think the Russians are a potent rival of our country and his foreign policy objectives are usually at directly contrary to our goals. I think he wants to weaken the American alliances in Europe and he also wants to become a player in the Middle East, more of a player in the Middle East. A lot of his foreign policy objectives are are at odds with ours. At the same time, I think the primary rival of the United States is China. I think, you know, Russia is half the size it was when we were facing them at the peak of the Cold War. Their economy is, long term prognosis, is nowhere near China's. But I'm concerned that the fixation on Russia not obscure the danger from China."

9. Wide shot of hearing

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Democrat, Minnesota:

"If you're confirmed, will the Justice Department jail reporters for doing their jobs?"

11. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I think that, you know, there are guidelines in place and I can conceive of situations where you know, as a last resort and where a news organization has run through a red flag or something like that, knows that they're putting out stuff that will hurt the country, there might be, there could be a situation where someone would be held in contempt."

12. Wide shot of hearing

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general continued efforts to distance himself from the president Tuesday as he testified before Senators at his confirmation hearing.

Under questioning by the Senate Judiciary Committee, William Barr said he would not "not carry out" any order to fire special counsel Robert Mueller without cause.

The comments were in response to a question from Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware.

Mueller's team is examining potential ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign. Barr said repeatedly Tuesday he wants Mueller to finish the investigation.

Trump's nominee was also asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is a friend or a foe to the United States.

Barr said while Russia is a "potent rival" of the U.S. with foreign policy objectives "usually at direct contrary," he minimized the threat from Moscow and said China, not Russia is the "primary rival" of the United States.

Throughout his testimony, Barr acknowledged Russian attempts to meddle in the 2016 election but said Russia "is half the size it was was" during the Cold War with an economy nowhere near the size of China's.

And he said he's concerned "that the fixation on Russia not obscure the danger from China."

On a separate topic, Barr told the committee he can't rule out jailing reporters for doing their jobs.

In  response to a question from Sen. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, Barr said that there are certain situations where a reporter could be held in contempt "as a last resort."

Barr said the situations he was envisioning would involve news organizations "putting out stuff that is hurting the country."

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Wide shot of William Barr sitting before the Senate Judiciary Committee as it returns from break

2. Wide cutaway of committee

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Coons, Democrat, Delaware:

"So most famously when directed by President Nixon to fire the special counsel the prosecutor investigating Watergate, Richardson refused and resigned instead as we all well know. If the president directed you to change those regulations and then fire Mueller or simply directly fire Mueller, would you follow Richardson's example and resign instead?"

4. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Assuming there was no good cause?

(Coons: Assuming no good cause.)

I would not carry out that instruction."

5. Cutaway of Coons

6. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"As I said, I'm going to carry out those regulations and I want him to finish this investigation."

7. Wide shot of hearing

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Well I don't hold myself out as a foreign policy expert but I think that he is, I think the Russians are a potent rival of our country and his foreign policy objectives are usually at directly contrary to our goals. I think he wants to weaken the American alliances in Europe and he also wants to become a player in the Middle East, more of a player in the Middle East. A lot of his foreign policy objectives are are at odds with ours. At the same time, I think the primary rival of the United States is China. I think, you know, Russia is half the size it was when we were facing them at the peak of the Cold War. Their economy is, long term prognosis, is nowhere near China's. But I'm concerned that the fixation on Russia not obscure the danger from China."

9. Wide shot of hearing

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Democrat, Minnesota:

"If you're confirmed, will the Justice Department jail reporters for doing their jobs?"

11. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I think that, you know, there are guidelines in place and I can conceive of situations where you know, as a last resort and where a news organization has run through a red flag or something like that, knows that they're putting out stuff that will hurt the country, there might be, there could be a situation where someone would be held in contempt."

12. Wide shot of hearing

The incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee says Attorney General nominee William Barr has confidence in special counsel Robert Mueller (MUHL'-ur) and will let Mueller finish his Russia investigation.

Sen. Lindsey Graham says Barr has a "very, very high opinion" of Mueller.

The South Carolina Republican was among the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who met with Barr on Wednesday as Barr made the rounds on Capitol Hill before his confirmation hearing next week.

President Donald Trump pushed out Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year and nominated Barr to replace him.

Trump's critics have warned that Barr may try to curtail Mueller's investigation, given that the president has repeatedly called it a "witch hunt."

And Barr wrote an unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year critiquing Mueller's investigation

Graham also commented on President Trump's speech Tuesday night from the Oval office.

"I thought the president did a good job of explaining the humanitarian problem," said Graham.

"I think the president is open minded to a deal, he's firm on the idea he needs border security money, including money for barriers, but I believe and hope he's open to a deal."

Washington DC - 9 January 2019

1. Cutaway of Attorney General nominee William Barr walking down the hall and into Sen. Lindsey Graham's office

++SILENT++

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"I think the main thing people want to know is what's his view of the Mueller investigation. And I can assure you based on what I've heard, that he has a high opinion of Mr. Mueller, believes that Mr. Mueller is doing a professional job, will do a professional job. Be fair to the president of the country as a whole and has no reason for Mr. Mueller to stop doing his job and is commited to allowing Mr. Mueller to finish."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"As to President I ask him, he said some pretty tough things. Mr. Barr said he's the one on the receiving end of this, he is sort of the accused and from the president's point of view, I think he believes it is a witch hunt and doesn't believe he did anything wrong and I can remember the Clinton days, when Ken Starr was part of a right-wing conspiracy. That is just sort of the way these things go."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"He had absolutely no indication he was going to tell Bob Mueller what to do, or how to do it. He is confident that Mr. Mueller will pursue the facts and the law."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"The memo, that was his opinion about the slippery slope of obstruction of justice charges against a president who wants to terminate a political appointee. He has got to believe that is a dangerous precedent to set and his memo was shared

with other people, he wanted their input. And we will share with the committee all the folks that Mr. Barr talked to and shared the memo with and we will give you an explanation to the committee as why he wrote it."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"He has a high opinion of Rod, they talked. Mr. Rosenstein mentioned him when they first met, I think that two years would probably be enough. He has some ideas of a deputy. I told him to pick somebody you are comfortable with and the president can approve and I trust his judgment to find a worthy successor to Mr. Rosenstein."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"I thought the president did a good job of explaining the humanitarian problem on both sides, those who are coming here, the abuse that women go through, the children to get to the country, what happens when the criminal illegal immigrants are allowed to come back time and time again. And I thought it was a pretty persuasive case that we need to secure our border and we need to realize illegal immigration is a human tragedy at multiple levels."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"To my Democratic colleagues I don't believe you're going to get much traction that the president is manufacturing a crisis because all of you, including me have voted for billions of dollars to secure the border very much like the president is proposing."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"Toward the end of the week, there'll be some ideas emerging from the Senate that would have some bipartisan buy-in. But here's what the Democrats are going to ask, this is a good question - will the president sign it? And I think the president is open minded to a deal, he's firm on the idea he needs border security money, including money for barriers, but I believe and hope he's open to a deal on the wall."

10). Cutaway of Graham and Barr in his office ++SILENT++

After nearly two years of waiting, America is about to get some answers straight from Robert Mueller- but not before President Donald Trump's attorney general has his say.

Attorney General William Barr says he will give Congress a redacted copy of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigative report at 11 a.m. EST

He told reporters at the Justice Department that he would transmit to Congress copies of the public version of Mueller's investigation into Russian interference during the 2016 election and President Donald Trump's campaign.

Democrats complained that Barr's news conference was an effort to influence reaction to the report ahead of its release.

The Justice Department on Thursday is expected to release a redacted version of the special counsel's report on Russian election interference and the Trump campaign, opening up months, if not years, of fights over what the document means in a deeply divided country.

Even the planned release of the nearly 400-page report quickly spiraled into a political battle Wednesday over whether Attorney General William Barr is attempting to shield the president who appointed him and spin the report's findings before the American people can read it and come to their own judgments.

Trump himself was in a high state of alert ahead of the report's release.

He repeated what has become a near daily refrain of criticism of the Russia investigation using his favored Twitter account. "PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!" he wrote.

POOL

Washington - 18 April 2019

1. Side view Attorney General William Barr walks into news conference

2. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"As you know one of the primary purposes of the special, special counsel's investigation was to determine whether President Trump's campaign or any individual associated with it conspired or coordinated with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election. Volume 1 of the special counsel's report describes the results of that investigation. As you will see the special counsel's report states that his quote investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities. I am sure that all Americans share my concern about the efforts of the Russian government to interfere in our presidential election. As the Special Counsel report makes clear, the Russian government sought to interfere in our election process. But thanks to the special counsel's thorough investigation we now know that the Russian operatives who perpetrated these schemes did not have the cooperation of President Trump or the Trump campaign or the knowing assistance of any other American for that matter. That is something that all Americans can and should be grateful to have confirmed."

3. Cutaway Barr speaking

4. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"The special counsel report outlines two main efforts by the Russian government to influence the 2016 election first the report details efforts by the Internet Research Agency, a Russian company with close ties to the Russian government, to sow social discord among American voters through disinformation and social media operations following a thorough investigation of this disinformation campaign, the special counsel brought charges in federal court against several Russian nationals and entities for their respective roles in this scheme. Those charges remain pending and the individual defendants remain at large but the special counsel found no evidence that any American, including anyone associated with the Trump campaign, conspired or coordinated with the Russian government or the IRA in this illegal scheme. "

After nearly two years of waiting, America is about to get some answers straight from Robert Mueller- but not before President Donald Trump's attorney general has his say.

Attorney General William Barr says he will give Congress a redacted copy of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigative report at 11 a.m. EST

He told reporters at the Justice Department that he would transmit to Congress copies of the public version of Mueller's investigation into Russian interference during the 2016 election and President Donald Trump's campaign.

Democrats complained that Barr's news conference was an effort to influence reaction to the report ahead of its release.

The Justice Department on Thursday is expected to release a redacted version of the special counsel's report on Russian election interference and the Trump campaign, opening up months, if not years, of fights over what the document means in a deeply divided country.

Even the planned release of the nearly 400-page report quickly spiraled into a political battle Wednesday over whether Attorney General William Barr is attempting to shield the president who appointed him and spin the report's findings before the American people can read it and come to their own judgments.

Trump himself was in a high state of alert ahead of the report's release.

He repeated what has become a near daily refrain of criticism of the Russia investigation using his favored Twitter account. "PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!" he wrote.

POOL

Washington - 18 April 2019

1. Side view Attorney General William Barr walks into news conference

2. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

SOUNDBITE (English)

"As you know on March 22nd, Special Counsel Robert Mueller concluded his investigation into matters related to Russian attempts to interfere in our 2016 presidential election. And he submitted his confidential report to me pursuant to department regulations. As I said during my Senate confirmation hearing, and since, I'm committed to ensuring the greatest degree possible of transparency concerning the special counsel's investigation, consistent with the law. At 11:00 this morning I'm going to transmit copies of the public version of the special counsel's report to the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House judiciary committees. The Department of Justice will also make the report available to the American people by posting it on the department's website after it has been delivered to Congress."

3. Cutaway Barr speaking

4. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"As you know one of the primary purposes of the special, special counsel's investigation was to determine whether President Trump's campaign or any individual associated with it conspired or coordinated with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election. Volume 1 of the special counsel's report describes the results of that investigation. As you will see the special counsel's report states that his quote investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities. I am sure that all Americans share my concern about the efforts of the Russian government to interfere in our presidential election. As the Special Counsel report makes clear, the Russian government sought to interfere in our election process. But thanks to the special counsel's thorough investigation we now know that the Russian operatives who perpetrated these schemes did not have the cooperation of President Trump or the Trump campaign or the knowing assistance of any other American for that matter. That is something that all Americans can and should be grateful to have confirmed."

5. Cutaway Barr speaking

6. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"The special counsel report outlines two main efforts by the Russian government to influence the 2016 election. First the report details efforts by the Internet Research Agency, a Russian company with close ties to the Russian government, to sow social discord among American voters through disinformation and social media operations. Following a thorough investigation of this disinformation campaign, the special counsel brought charges in federal court against several Russian nationals and entities for their respective roles in this scheme. Those charges remain pending and the individual defendants remain at large. But the special counsel found no evidence that any American, including anyone associated with the Trump campaign, conspired or coordinated with the Russian government or the IRA in this illegal scheme. "

7. Side, Barr speaking

After nearly two years of waiting, America is about to get some answers straight from Robert Mueller- but not before President Donald Trump's attorney general has his say.

Attorney General William Barr says he will give Congress a redacted copy of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigative report at 11 a.m. EST

He told reporters at the Justice Department that he would transmit to Congress copies of the public version of Mueller's investigation into Russian interference during the 2016 election and President Donald Trump's campaign.

Democrats complained that Barr's news conference was an effort to influence reaction to the report ahead of its release.

The Justice Department on Thursday is expected to release a redacted version of the special counsel's report on Russian election interference and the Trump campaign, opening up months, if not years, of fights over what the document means in a deeply divided country.

Even the planned release of the nearly 400-page report quickly spiraled into a political battle Wednesday over whether Attorney General William Barr is attempting to shield the president who appointed him and spin the report's findings before the American people can read it and come to their own judgments.

Trump himself was in a high state of alert ahead of the report's release.

He repeated what has become a near daily refrain of criticism of the Russia investigation using his favored Twitter account. "PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!" he wrote.

POOL

Washington - 18 April 2019

1. Side view Attorney General William Barr walks into news conference

2. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

SOUNDBITE (English)

"As you know on March 22nd, Special Counsel Robert Mueller concluded his investigation into matters related to Russian attempts to interfere in our 2016 presidential election. And he submitted his confidential report to me pursuant to department regulations. As I said during my Senate confirmation hearing, and since, I'm committed to ensuring the greatest degree possible of transparency concerning the special counsel's investigation, consistent with the law.  At 11:00 this morning I'm going to transmit copies of the public version of the special counsel's report to the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House judiciary committees. The Department of Justice will also make the report available to the American people by posting it on the department's website after it has been delivered to Congress."

3. Cutaway Barr speaking

4. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"As you know one of the primary purposes of the special, special counsel's investigation was to determine whether President Trump's campaign or any individual associated with it conspired or coordinated with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election. Volume 1 of the special counsel's report describes the results of that investigation.  As you will see the special counsel's report states that his quote investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities. I am sure that all Americans share my concern about the efforts of the Russian government to interfere in our presidential election.  As the Special Counsel report makes clear, the Russian government sought to interfere in our election process. But thanks to the special counsel's thorough investigation we now know that the Russian operatives who perpetrated these schemes did not have the cooperation of President Trump or the Trump campaign or the knowing assistance of any other American for that matter. That is something that all Americans can and should be grateful to have confirmed."

5. Cutaway Barr speaking

6. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) William Barr, Attorney General:

"The special counsel report outlines two main efforts by the Russian government to influence the 2016 election. First the report details efforts by the Internet Research Agency, a Russian company with close ties to the Russian government, to sow social discord among American voters through disinformation and social media operations. Following a thorough investigation of this disinformation campaign, the special counsel brought charges in federal court against several Russian nationals and entities for their respective roles in this scheme. Those charges remain pending and the individual defendants remain at large. But the special counsel found no evidence that any American, including anyone associated with the Trump campaign, conspired or coordinated with the Russian government or the IRA in this illegal scheme. "

7. Side, Barr speaking

The incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee says Attorney General nominee William Barr has confidence in special counsel Robert Mueller (MUHL'-ur) and will let Mueller finish his Russia investigation.

Sen. Lindsey Graham says Barr has a "very, very high opinion" of Mueller.

The South Carolina Republican was among the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who met with Barr on Wednesday as Barr made the rounds on Capitol Hill before his confirmation hearing next week.

President Donald Trump pushed out Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year and nominated Barr to replace him.

Trump's critics have warned that Barr may try to curtail Mueller's investigation, given that the president has repeatedly called it a "witch hunt."

And Barr wrote an unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year critiquing Mueller's investigation

Graham also commented on President Trump's speech Tuesday night from the Oval office.

"I thought the president did a good job of explaining the humanitarian problem," said Graham.

"I think the president is open minded to a deal, he's firm on the idea he needs border security money, including money for barriers, but I believe and hope he's open to a deal."

Washington DC - 9 January 2019

1. Cutaway of Attorney General nominee William Barr walking down the hall and into Sen. Lindsey Graham's office

++SILENT++

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"I think the main thing people want to know is what's his view of the Mueller investigation. And I can assure you based on what I've heard, that he has a high opinion of Mr. Mueller, believes that Mr. Mueller is doing a professional job, will do a professional job. Be fair to the president of the country as a whole and has no reason for Mr. Mueller to stop doing his job and is commited to allowing Mr. Mueller to finish."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"As to President I ask him, he said some pretty tough things. Mr. Barr said he's the one on the receiving end of this, he is sort of the accused and from the president's point of view, I think he believes it is a witch hunt and doesn't believe he did anything wrong and I can remember the Clinton days, when Ken Starr was part of a right-wing conspiracy. That is just sort of the way these things go."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"He had absolutely no indication he was going to tell Bob Mueller what to do, or how to do it. He is confident that Mr. Mueller will pursue the facts and the law."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"The memo, that was his opinion about the slippery slope of obstruction of justice charges against a president who wants to terminate a political appointee. He has got to believe that is a dangerous precedent to set and his memo was shared

with other people, he wanted their input. And we will share with the committee all the folks that Mr. Barr talked to and shared the memo with and we will give you an explanation to the committee as why he wrote it."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"He has a high opinion of Rod, they talked. Mr. Rosenstein mentioned him when they first met, I think that two years would probably be enough. He has some ideas of a deputy. I told him to pick somebody you are comfortable with and the president can approve and I trust his judgment to find a worthy successor to Mr. Rosenstein."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"I thought the president did a good job of explaining the humanitarian problem on both sides, those who are coming here, the abuse that women go through, the children to get to the country, what happens when the criminal illegal immigrants are allowed to come back time and time again. And I thought it was a pretty persuasive case that we need to secure our border and we need to realize illegal immigration is a human tragedy at multiple levels."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"To my Democratic colleagues I don't believe you're going to get much traction that the president is manufacturing a crisis because all of you, including me have voted for billions of dollars to secure the border very much like the president is proposing."

++SEPARATED BY BLACK++

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"Toward the end of the week, there'll be some ideas emerging from the Senate that would have some bipartisan buy-in. But here's what the Democrats are going to ask, this is a good question - will the president sign it? And I think the president is open minded to a deal, he's firm on the idea he needs border security money, including money for barriers, but I believe and hope he's open to a deal on the wall."

10). Cutaway of Graham and Barr in his office ++SILENT++

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general strove at his confirmation Tuesday to assert his independence from the White House, saying he believed Russia had interfered with the 2016 presidential election, that a special counsel investigation shadowing Trump needs to move forward and that his predecessor made the correct call by recusing from the probe.

Those comments departed from Trump's own views and underscored Barr's efforts to reassure Democrats that he will not be a loyalist to a president who has appeared to demand it from law enforcement.

Trump has repeatedly castigated special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, calling it a "witch hunt," and lambasted and ultimately pushed out his first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, for his recusal because of his work with the campaign.

"I will not be bullied into doing anything that I think is wrong, whether it be by editorial boards, Congress or the president," Barr said.

Barr repeatedly praised Mueller, who has been investigating whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Kremlin to sway the election, and sought to provide assurance he would not undermine his work. He called him a friend of 30 years and saying he couldn't imagine that Mueller would do anything that would justify his firing.

Barr would oversee the final stages of the investigation, and said that though he would consult with ethics officials on whether he would need to recuse because of a critical unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year, the decision would be ultimately his.

He also disclosed having discussed Mueller with Trump during a meeting in 2017 when Barr declined to join his legal team.

Trump wanted to know what Mueller, who worked for Barr when he led the Justice Department between 1991 and 1993, was like.

Barr said he told Trump Mueller "is a straight shooter and should be dealt with as such."

The nominee also said former FBI Director James Comey made the wrong decision by holding a news conference announcing he wasn't recommending charges in the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

Barr said if authorities aren't going to bring charges, then there should not be a news conference to detail derogatory information uncovered during the probe. Comey has defended his decision.

"That's not the way the Department of Justice does business," Barr said.

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Wide side shot of Barr testifying at confirmation hearing

2. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I have a very good life. I love it, but I also want to help in this circumstance and I am not going to do anything that I think is wrong and I will not be bullied into doing anything I think is wrong by anybody, whether it be editorial boards or Congress or the president. I'm going to do what I think is right."

3. Cutaway of committee members

4. Cutaway of Sen. Lindsey Graham

5. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"It was a very brief meeting where essentially the president wanted to know, he said, 'Oh, you know Bob Mueller. How well do you know Bob Mueller?' And I told him how well I knew Bob Mueller and how you know the Barrs and Muellers were good friends and would be good friends when this is all over and so forth. And he was interested in that, wanted to know you know what I thought about, you know, Mueller's integrity and so forth and so on. And I said Bob is a, is a straight shooter and should be dealt with as such. And he said something to the effect like, 'So are you envisioning some role here?' And I said, 'No actually, Mr. President, right now I couldn't do it. You know, I just, my personal and my professional obligations are such that I'm unable to do it.' So he asked me for my phone number, I gave it to him and I never heard from him again until..."

6. Wide shot of hearing

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat, Vermont:

"So will you commit, if confirmed, to both seeking and following the advice of the department's career ethics officials on whether you must recuse from the special counsel's investigation?"

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I will seek the advice of the career ethics personnel. But under the regulations, I make the decision as the head of the agency as to my own recusal. So, I certainly would consult with them and at the end of the day, I would make a decision in good faith based on the laws and the facts that are evident at that time."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat, Vermont:

"Are there any circumstances that would cause you to terminate the investigation, a component of or significantly restricted funding?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Under the under the regulations, Bob Mueller could only be terminated for good cause and I frankly, it's unimaginable to me that Bob would ever do anything that gave rise to good cause. But in theory, if something happened that was good cause, for me it would actually take more than that, it would have to be pretty grave and the public interest would essentially have to compel it. Because I believe right now the overarching public interest is to allow him to finish."

11. Wide shot of hearing

12. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I think Jim Comey is, as I've said, is an extremely gifted man who's served the country with distinction in many roles. But I thought that to the extent he, he actually announced a decision, was wrong. And the other thing is if you're not going to indict someone then you don't stand up there and unload negative information about the person. That's not the way the Department of Justice does business."

13. Wide shot of hearing

Seeking a bipartisan compromise to avoid a government shutdown, President Donald Trump suggested on January 9th 2018 that an immigration deal could be reached in two phases - first by addressing young immigrants and border security with what he called a "bill of love," then by making comprehensive changes that have long eluded Congress.

Trump held a lengthy meeting with Republican and Democratic lawmakers seeking a solution for hundreds of thousands of young people who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children.

In 2017 Trump ended the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which shielded more than 700,000 people from deportation and gave then the right to work legally in the country. He gave Congress until March to find a fix.

The president, congressional Republicans and Democrats expressed optimism for a deal just 10 days before a government shutdown deadline. Trump expressed a willingness to be flexible in finding an agreement.

Trump told the bipartisan group of 20 lawmakers that if they reach a deal, he will sign it.

A group of journalists observed the meandering meeting for an extraordinary length of time - about 55 minutes - that involved Trump seeking input from Democrats and Republicans alike in a freewheeling exchange on the contentious issue.

The president said he would insist on construction of a border security wall as part of an agreement involving young immigrants, but he said Congress could then pursue a comprehensive immigration overhaul in the second phase.

House Republicans said they planned to soon introduce legislation to address border security and the young immigrants. Trump said, "it should be a bill of love."

***

President Donald Trump denied January 12th via Twitter that he said anything "derogatory about Haitians" during an immigration meeting at the White House on Thursday, as the country and the world continued to express outrage over his reported comments.

Trump was in a closed meeting with members of Congress to discuss immigration on January 11th when he reportedly questioned why the U.S. would accept more people from Haiti and "shithole countries" in Africa, rather than places like Norway.

At first the White House did not deny that the remark was made. On Friday the president tweeted that his language was "tough" but insisted he did not say anything derogatory about Haitians aside from noting it's a poor country.

Associated Press White House reporter Jonathan Lemire said no one at the White House denied "that he used these vulgar terms to describe these immigrants."

on January 12th Trump took to Twitter to say the language he used at the meeting "was tough," but insisted the words being reported "was not the language used."

He also denied saying "anything derogatory about Haitians other than" that Haiti is "a very poor and troubled country."

***

After President Trump made disparaging remarks about immigrants, some members of the Haitian communities in New York and Florida said they were offended and believed his comments were racist.

President Donald Trump on January 12th questioned why the U.S. would accept more immigrants from "shithole countries" after senators discussed revamping rules affecting those from Africa and Haiti, according to people briefed on the conversation.

Haitians in New York and South Florida reacted negatively to the remarks.

"His comment is divisive. It's un-American. It's extremely offensive. I was reading the Daily News earlier this morning. Actually they could not have said it any better," said Gerald Cajust, referring to a crude depiction of the President on the front page of the New York Daily News.

In North Miami Beach, Florida, hosts at a Haitian-American radio studio, said although they were disappointed in Trump's comments, they believed Haitian leaders were also to blame for the country's economic situation.

Fabiola Charles, a Haitian radio personality with WSRF AM, said "we're looking at ourselves as well and saying you know what, if we took time to actually take care of our people, the president wouldn't have to say something like this about us. So, we also put the blame on us."

***

US President Donald Trump said on January 14th he is not a racist, just days after making controversial comments about Haiti and African countries.

Trump has been accused of using a vulgar word to describe African countries during an Oval Office meeting the previous week with a bipartisan group of six senators.

People briefed on the conversation say that during the meeting the president also questioned the need to admit more Haitians to the US.

The individuals spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to describe the meeting publicly.

Trump addressed the issue briefly on Sunday as he arrived for dinner at one of his Florida golf clubs with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California.

Asked what he thinks about people who think he's racist, Trump said: "I am not a racist". He told reporters: "I am the least racist person you have ever interviewed. That I can tell you."

He also praised authorities in Hawaii for taking responsibility for the blunder that caused more than a million people to fear that they were about to be struck by a nuclear missile.

***

Haitians showed their anger over vulgar comments made against their country and Africa by US President Donald Trump with a protest January 18th outside the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince.

Demonstrators gathered outside the gates of the embassy complex chanting slogans and waving signs denouncing Trump over his remarks and a move to end a program that gave temporary legal status to thousands of Haitians in the US.

Signs and Creole chants by the protesters criticised remarks by the president last week in which he is said to have profanely disparaged African countries and asked why the US would want more Haitians.

The protest by fewer than 100 demonstrators was peaceful and ended without incident.

Another demonstration was planned for next week.

The Haitian government said it was shocked by the remarks, which came on the eve of the anniversary of the country's devastating January 2010 earthquake.

The Trump administration has said that about 60,000 Haitians who have been allowed to stay and work in the US since the earthquake must leave the country in July 2019.

***

A former top adviser to President Donald Trump's election campaign pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy and false statements charges February 23rd in the special counsel's Russia investigation.

The plea by Rick Gates is a strong indication that he is planning to cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation as it continues to probe the Trump campaign, Russian election interference and Gates' longtime business associate, Paul Manafort.

Gates, 45, of Richmond, Virginia, appeared at the federal courthouse in Washington for his plea agreement hearing.

A court filing shows Gates has agreed to plead to charges accusing him of conspiring against the U.S. government related to fraud and unregistered foreign lobbying as well as lying to federal authorities in a recent interview.

Gates' decision to admit to the crimes comes a day after a federal grand jury in Virginia returned a 32-count indictment against him and Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman, accusing them of tax evasion and bank fraud.

The indictment in Virginia was the second round of charges against Gates and against Manafort, who has denied any wrongdoing. The two men were initially charged last October with unregistered lobbying and conspiring to launder millions of dollars they earned while working on behalf of a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party.

Gates' decision marks the fifth publicly known guilty plea in the special counsel probe into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin during the 2016 campaign.

***

America's top diplomat is one of any White House's highest-level cabinet members, often seated at the right hand of the president.

As a newcomer to Washington politics, former Exxon Mobile CEO Rex Tillerson was tasked with steering the ship of state with no foreign policy experience and needed to navigate a turbulent, frequently contradictory White House.

As he stepped into the State Department for the first time, Secretary of State Tillerson appealed for unity.

"I know this was a hotly-contested election and we do not all feel the same way about the outcome, " he said, adding "we cannot let our personal convictions overwhelm our ability to work as one team."

But as Tillerson neared the six-month mark on the job, he was forced to knock down a flurry of speculation that he was unhappy and may quit.

At the time, Washington was buzzing with rumors that he would leave due to frustration with the White House.

In his first appearance in the State Department briefing room, Tillerson reiterated that he had a good relationship with the president.

While Tillerson was redefining foreign strategy under the Trump administration's overarching police of "America First", his efforts to craft coherent policy were frequently upended by a tweeting boss.

By October 2017, Tillerson was forced in an unscheduled news conference held at the State Department to defend remarks he made in the Pentagon earlier that President Trump was, "a moron."

In response, Trump said in an interview published in Forbes magazine that if Rex Tillerson did call him a moron, the two should "compare IQ tests."

The White House later said that Trump was joking when he appeared to question his secretary of state's intelligence.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters that the president "never implied that the secretary of state was not incredibly intelligent."

She says: "He made a joke, no more than that."

From the start of his tenure, Tillerson's selection raised potential conflict-of-interest issues, as Exxon's business interests around the globe, included Russia.

As an oil executive, Tillerson had argued against sanctions that the U.S. and European allies imposed on Russia after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014.

***

President Donald Trump says he has "total confidence" in Mike Pompeo, his new pick for Secretary of State.

Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on March 13th, saying he would nominate CIA Director Mike Pompeo to replace him.

It's a major staff reshuffle just as Trump dives into high-stakes talks with North Korea.

Trump announced the change in a tweet early on March 13th just four hours after Tillerson returned to Washington from a trip to Africa.

He stopped to take questions from reporters at the South Lawn of the White House about his decision to oust Tillerson and replace him with Pompeo.

Trump said he and Tillerson "disagreed on things" like the Iran deal.

"We were not really thinking the same," Trump said about Tillerson. "With Mike Pompeo, we have a very similar thought process. I think it's going to go very well."

***

CBS says it will air its interview with porn actress Stormy Daniels on March 25th's episode of "60 Minutes."

Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, has said she had sex with Donald Trump before he became president. She has been trying to invalidate a nondisclosure agreement she signed days before the 2016 presidential election so she can discuss her relationship with Trump, which she said began in 2006 and continued for about a year.

CNN anchor and "60 Minutes" correspondent Anderson Cooper recorded the interview with Clifford earlier this month.

Clifford's attorney, Michael Avenatti, told The Associated Press on March 21st that more details of the affair would come out on "60 Minutes," and said his office was checking out similar claims from six women who had come forward.

"This is about this woman wanting to be able to tell her story to the American people, tell her version of the facts" said Avenatti.

00:00:00

Trump wants immigration deal to be 'bill of love'

4134075

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington DC - 9 January 2018

1. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald Trump, U.S. President:

" This should be a bill of love, truly it should be a bill of love. And we can do that. But it also has to be a bill where we're able to secure our border. Drugs are pouring into our country at a record pace. "

00:13:18

Trump Pushes Back on Vulgar Comments About Haiti

4134641

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Port au Prince, Haiti - 21 November, 2017

2. Shots of people walking, traffic in Haitian street

Johannesburg - 12 January 2018

3. Shot of people walking on the street in Johannesburg

00:23:03

Haitians In US offended by comments attributed to Trump

4134647

ASSOCIATED PRESS

New York - January 12, 2018

4. Wide of Haitian American advocacy group storefront

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Herold Dasque, Haitian Americans United for Progress

"It's beyond racism. Of course he's a racist. He's going to say 'no I'm not racist.' What kind of statement is that? 'I don't need Haitians.' Economically they are the one working in the garden. "

6. Interior of barber shop

00:40:21

President Trump: "I'm Not a Racist"

4134855

POOL

West Palm Beach - 14 January 2018

++AUDIO AS INCOMING++

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald Trump, US President:

"No, no, I'm not a racist. I am the least racist person you have ever interviewed, that I can tell you."

00:47:21

Protesters in Haiti condemn Trump remarks

4135616

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Port-au-Prince - 18 January 2018

8. People protesting vulgar comments on Haiti and Africa by US President Donald Trump outside US embassy

9. Sign reading (English) "The U.S. has always been racist! Trump just said it out loud"

10. People holding signs during protest, one reading (English) "Donald Trump's racism is the true face of U.S. foreign policy."

00:57:20

Ex-Trump Aide Pleads Guilty in Russia Probe

4141338

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington - 23 February 2018

11. Wide shot of Rick Gates walking into US District Court

12. STILL PHOTO of Gates walking into court

13. Rick Gates and attorney walking out of court and getting into vehicle

01:10:17

Rex Tillerson: Businessman turned Trump diplomat out at the White House

4144029

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Various - Various

Washington, D.C. - 31 July 2017

14. Various, Cabinet Room meeting with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson seated right of President Donald Trump

Washington, D.C. - 1 February 2017

15. Mid, Rex Tillerson being sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence

01:34:09

Trump: Pompeo Will be a Great Secretary of State

4144042

ASSOCIATED PRESS, POOL

Washington - 13 March 2018

16. President Donald Trump stops to speak with reporters on White House South Lawn

17. SOUNDBITE: (English) President Donald Trump:

"I've worked with Mike Pompeo now for quite some time -- tremendous energy, tremendous intellect. We're always on the same wavelength.

18. Wide of Trump

19. SOUNDBITE: (English) President Donald Trump:

"Rex and I've been talking about this for a long time. We've got a long actually quite well but we disagreed on things. When you look at the Iran deal: I think it's terrible. I guess he thought it was OK.

02:00:11

Lawyer: Trump should take Stormy Daniels very seriously

4145439

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Various - 19/21 March 2018/FILE

FILE: Los Angeles - 11 February 2007

20. STILL: Stormy Daniels

FILE: New Orleans, Louisiana - 6 May 2009

21. STILL of Stormy Daniels

22. SOUNDBITE (English): Michael Avenatti, Attorney for Stormy Daniels

"I don't know how serious they are taking us at this point. I think they're probably taking us more seriously today than they were a couple weeks ago. I'll say that. I'll say that they should be taking us very seriously."

House Republicans are interviewing James Comey behind closed doors Friday, hauling the former FBI director to Capitol Hill one final time before they cede power to Democrats in January.

Comey is appearing for the interview after unsuccessfully fighting a subpoena in court. It is the first time he has answered lawmakers' questions since an explosive June 2016 hearing in which he asserted that President Donald Trump fired him to interfere with his investigation of Russia's ties to the Trump campaign.

The interview comes as GOP lawmakers are wrapping up a yearlong investigation into decisions made at the Justice Department during the 2016 presidential election. Republicans argue that department officials were biased against Trump as they started the investigation into his campaign's ties with Russia and cleared Democrat Hillary Clinton in a separate investigation into her email use.

Comey was in charge of both of those investigations.

Democrats, who will also attend the interview, have said the GOP investigation is merely a way to distract from and undermine special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. Mueller took over the department's investigation when he was appointed in May 2017.

"This is a waste of time to start with," Nadler said. "The entire purpose of this investigation is to cast aspersions on the real investigation ... there is no evidence whatsoever of bias at the FBI or any of this other nonsense."

Nadler said he's just learned of President Donald Trump's decision to nominate William Barr as Attorney General, but he said he was "hopeful" that Barr would protect the Mueller investigation. He also expressed concern that Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker has not been confirmed by the Senate.

Washington - 7 December 2018

1. Reporter asks Rep. Nadler question UPSOUND: (English) When you become chairman (of House Judiciary Commitee) are you going to officially end this investigation?

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

Yes. (Reporter: Why?) Because it's a waste of time to start with. The entire purpose of this investigation is to cast aspersions on the real investigation, which is Mueller, there is no evidence whatsoever of bias at the FBI or any of this other nonsense that they're talking about."

3. Rep. Jim Jordan walking

4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jim Jordan, (R) Ohio:

"I mean I've got lots of questions but I guess one in particular is we learned from Bruce Ohr (U.S. Department of Justice official) that Christopher Steele (former British intelligence officer) had told him he was desperate to stop President Trump from being president. I want to know when James Comey knew that. And more importantly did he know that before they went to the FISA court with Mr. Steele's work product. I think that's an important question to go, a line of questioning go down."

5. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi walks toward reporters

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, (D) Illinois:

"Well we have the right witness for the wrong questions. I think the Republicans brought him here to talk about Hillary Clinton. That's a settled issue. Instead we should be talking more about the ongoing Russia investigation, Paul Manafort, Michael Cohen and Michael Flynn. I brought a copy of his (Comey's) book, I'm hoping to get a signed copy to auction off to pay for this wasteful investigation."

++SOTS SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++

7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, (D) Illinois:

"I'm hopeful that  you know Mr. Barr would be very responsible with the Mueller investigation. Certainly, Mr. Whitaker was not the right pick, even for an acting attorney general position. So let's see what Mr. Barr would say in his confirmation hearings. I think there are going to be a lot of pointed questions about how he's going to handle the Mueller investigation going forward. The bottom line is this. We have to allow our investigation to proceed unimpeded. Let the chips fall where they may. And in the meantime I'm hoping that we pass some protect Mueller legislation to make sure that his investigation is not terminated in an untimely way."

++SOTS SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++

8.  SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"I just heard about William Barr. I don't really know that much about him. I know he's attorney general years ago. But the real question now is that you know Barr will have to go before the Senate for confirmation. That will take some time. The real question now is that Whitaker is still the acting attorney general without having gone through the Senate. I believe that's unconstitutional and lots of questions about his bias and his having prejudged the outcome of the Mueller investigation have not been answered."

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general told senators Tuesday "it is vitally important" that special counsel Robert Mueller be allowed to complete his Russia investigation

William Barr said at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing that it is in "the best interest of everyone...that this matter be resolved," adding, "the country needs a credible  resolution to these issues."

Barr said he believes Congress and the public must learn the results.

He also insisted that Trump never sought any promises, assurances or commitments before selecting him to be the country's chief law enforcement officer.

The top Democrat on the committee raised questions about a memo Barr wrote criticizing the Russia investigation and saying it showed a determine effort to undermine Bob Mueller.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, said she's also troubled by Barr's expansive view of presidential powers since he will be overseeing the special counsel's investigation into whether President Donald Trump or his associates coordinated with Russian election interference.

Barr has defended the memo. He says it was narrowly focused on a single theory of obstruction and didn't touch the broader questions surrounding Russian election interference.

Barr revealed Monday that he had sent the memo to White House lawyers and lawyers for Trump.

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Various shots of William Barr approaching witness table

2. Shots of Barr taking oath before testimony

3. Cutaway of committee chairman, Senator Lindsey Graham

4. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"It is the attorney general's responsibility to enforce the law even handedly and with integrity. The attorney general must ensure that the administration of justice, the enforcement of the law is above and away from politics. Nothing could be more destructive of our system of government, of the rule of law or the Department of Justice as an institution than any toleration of political interference with the enforcement of the law."

5. Wide shot of Barr testifying

6. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"If confirmed, I will serve with the same independence I did in 1991. At that time when President Bush chose me, he sought no promises and asked only that his attorney general act with professionalism and integrity. Likewise President Trump has sought no assurances, promises or commitments from me of any kind, either express or implied, and I have not given him any other than that I would run the department with professionalism and integrity."

7. Cutaway of committee members

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I believe it is vitally important that the special counsel be allowed to complete his investigation. I have known Bob Mueller for 30 years. We worked closely together throughout my previous tenure at the Department of Justice. We've been friends since and I have the utmost respect for Bob and his distinguished record of public service. And when he was named special counsel I said his selection was good news and that knowing him, I had confidence he would handle the matter properly and I still have that confidence today. Given his public actions to date, I expect that the special counsel is well along in his investigation. At the same time, the president has been steadfast that he was not involved in any collusion with Russian attempts to interfere in the election. I believe it is in the best interests of everyone, the president, Congress and the American people, that this matter be resolved by allowing the special counsel to complete his work. The country needs a credible resolution to these issues and if confirmed, I will not permit partisan politics, personal interests or any other improper consideration to interfere with this or any other investigation. I will follow the special counsel regulations scrupulously and in good faith and on my watch Bob will be allowed to finish his work."

9. Wide shot of hearing

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Democrat, California:

"Your memo also shows a large, sweeping view of presidential authority and a determined effort, I thought, to undermine Bob Mueller even though you state you have been friends and are in the dark about many of the facts of the investigation. So it does raise questions about your willingness to reach conclusions before knowing the facts and whether you prejudge the Mueller investigation and I hope you'll make that clear today. It also raises a number of serious questions about your views on executive authority and whether the president is in fact above the law."

11. Wide side shot of hearing

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general told senators Tuesday "it is vitally important" that special counsel Robert Mueller be allowed to complete his Russia investigation

William Barr said at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing that it is in "the best interest of everyone...that this matter be resolved," adding, "the country needs a credible  resolution to these issues."

Barr said he believes Congress and the public must learn the results.

He also insisted that Trump never sought any promises, assurances or commitments before selecting him to be the country's chief law enforcement officer.

The top Democrat on the committee raised questions about a memo Barr wrote criticizing the Russia investigation and saying it showed a determine effort to undermine Bob Mueller.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, said she's also troubled by Barr's expansive view of presidential powers since he will be overseeing the special counsel's investigation into whether President Donald Trump or his associates coordinated with Russian election interference.

Barr has defended the memo. He says it was narrowly focused on a single theory of obstruction and didn't touch the broader questions surrounding Russian election interference.

Barr revealed Monday that he had sent the memo to White House lawyers and lawyers for Trump.

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. Various shots of William Barr approaching witness table

2. Shots of Barr taking oath before testimony

3. Cutaway of committee chairman, Senator Lindsey Graham

4. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"It is the attorney general's responsibility to enforce the law even handedly and with integrity. The attorney general must ensure that the administration of justice, the enforcement of the law is above and away from politics. Nothing could be more destructive of our system of government, of the rule of law or the Department of Justice as an institution than any toleration of political interference with the enforcement of the law."

5. Wide shot of Barr testifying

6. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"If confirmed, I will serve with the same independence I did in 1991. At that time when President Bush chose me, he sought no promises and asked only that his attorney general act with professionalism and integrity. Likewise President Trump has sought no assurances, promises or commitments from me of any kind, either express or implied, and I have not given him any other than that I would run the department with professionalism and integrity."

7. Cutaway of committee members

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I believe it is vitally important that the special counsel be allowed to complete his investigation. I have known Bob Mueller for 30 years. We worked closely together throughout my previous tenure at the Department of Justice. We've been friends since and I have the utmost respect for Bob and his distinguished record of public service. And when he was named special counsel I said his selection was good news and that knowing him, I had confidence he would handle the matter properly and I still have that confidence today. Given his public actions to date, I expect that the special counsel is well along in his investigation. At the same time, the president has been steadfast that he was not involved in any collusion with Russian attempts to interfere in the election. I believe it is in the best interests of everyone, the president, Congress and the American people, that this matter be resolved by allowing the special counsel to complete his work. The country needs a credible resolution to these issues and if confirmed, I will not permit partisan politics, personal interests or any other improper consideration to interfere with this or any other investigation. I will follow the special counsel regulations scrupulously and in good faith and on my watch Bob will be allowed to finish his work."

9. Wide shot of hearing

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Democrat, California:

"Your memo also shows a large, sweeping view of presidential authority and a determined effort, I thought, to undermine Bob Mueller even though you state you have been friends and are in the dark about many of the facts of the investigation. So it does raise questions about your willingness to reach conclusions before knowing the facts and whether you prejudge the Mueller investigation and I hope you'll make that clear today. It also raises a number of serious questions about your views on executive authority and whether the president is in fact above the law."

11. Wide side shot of hearing

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general says he doesn't believe special counsel Robert Mueller (MUHL'-ur) "would be involved in a witch hunt."

Barr made the comment Tuesday at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Trump has repeatedly decried the special counsel's investigation as a "witch hunt" and has suggested he is being targeted by the Justice Department.

Mueller is investigating potential ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign.

Barr also says it would be an "abuse of power" for Trump to intervene in an investigation he "has a stake in."

William Barr said Tuesday at his confirmation hearing he believes such an action would be a breach of the president's constitutional duties and could violate federal law depending upon the circumstances.

Barr was responding to questions from California Sen. Dianne Feinstein (FYN'-styn), the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, in light of a memo he wrote criticizing special counsel Robert Mueller's obstruction-of-justice investigation.

Barr has said the memo was intended to be narrowly focused on one of Mueller's reported interpretations of obstruction. Barr also says his memo was based solely on public reporting and not any confidential information.

POOL

Washington - 15 January 2018

1. Wide of hearing

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina:

"Are you familiar with the January 11th New York Times article about FBI open inquiry into whether Trump was secretly working on behalf of Russians."

3. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee (off camera):

"Yes Mr. Chairman."

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina:

"Would you promise me and this committee to look into this and tell us whether or not, in the appropriate way, a counterintelligence investigation was opened up by somebody at the FBI slash Department of Justice against President Trump."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Yes, Mr. Chairman. I think there were a number of investigations as I understand it going on in the department."

6.  SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"You ever heard of such a thing in all the time you've been associated with the Department of Justice."

7. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I have never heard of that."

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina:

"Are there rules about how you can do counterintelligence investigations?"

9. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I believe there are Mr. Chairman."

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"So if you want to open up one against the president. are there any checks and balances?"

11. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Not outside the FBI."

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"OK well we need to look at that."

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina:

"Mueller. You say you've known Mueller a long time. Would you say you have a close relationship with Mr. Mueller?"

14. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I would say we were good friends."

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"Would you say that you understand him to be a fair minded person?."

16. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Absolutely."

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"Do you trust him to be fair to the president and the country as a whole?"

18. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Yes."

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina (off camera):

"When his report comes to you, will you share with us as much as possible?"

20. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Consistent with the regulations and the law, yes."

21. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina:

"Do you believe Mr. Mueller would be involved in a witch hunt against anybody?"

22. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I don't I don't believe Mr. Mueller would would be involved in a witch hunt."

23. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California:

"Will you commit to no interference with the scope of the special counsel's investigation?"

24. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I will--the scope of the special counsel's investigation is set by his charter and by the regulations and I will ensure that those are maintained."

25. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California (off camera):

"Will you commit to providing Mr. Muller with the resources, funds and time needed to complete his investigation?"

26. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Yes."

27. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California (off camera):

"Will you commit to ensuring that Special Counsel Mueller is not terminated without good cause, consistent with department regulations?"

28. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Absolutely."

29. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California (off camera):

"If special counsel Mueller makes any request, for instance, about the scope of his investigation or resources for his investigation will you commit to notifying Congress if you deny that request?"

30. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I think the regulations require notification of Congress if there's a disagreement."

31. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California:

"Will you commit to making any report Mueller produces at the conclusion of his investigation available to Congress and to the public?"

32. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"As I said in my statement I am going to make as much information available as I can, consistent with the rules and regulations that are part of the special counsel regulations."

33. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California (off camera):

"Will you commit to making any report on the obstruction of justice public?"

34. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"That's the same answer."

35. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D) California:

"Your 2018 memo, in it, you stated and I quote 'the framers plan contemplates that the president's law enforcement powers extend to all matters including those in which he had a personal stake' end quote. Please explain what you base this conclusion on."

36. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"Here's the Department of Justice right here and within the Department of Justice, enforcement decisions are being made. The president's over here. And I think of it as there are two categories of potential communications. One would be on a case that the president wants to communicate about that he has no personal interest in no political interest in. Let's say the president is concerned about Chinese stealing trade secrets and say I want you to go after this company that's being, you know, that may be stealing trade secrets. That's perfectly appropriate for him to do, to communicate that, but whether it's bona fide or not, as I said in my statement, the Department of Justice's obligation and the attorney general's obligation is not to take any action unless we reach, we, the Department of Justice and the attorney general, reach their own, independent conclusion that it is justified under the law. And, regardless of the instruction and that's my quote that everyone is saying you know siccing you know it's OK for the president to direct things. All I said was it's not per se improper for the president to call on the department for doing something, especially if he has no personal or political interest in it. The other category of cases and let's pick a you know an easy bad example would be if a member of the president's family or a business associate or something was under investigation and he tries to intervene. He--he's the chief law enforcement officer and you could say well he has the power. But that would be a breach of his obligation under the Constitution to faithfully execute the laws. So in my opinion if he attempts, if a president attempts to intervene in a matter that he has a stake in to try to protect himself that should first be looked at as a breach of his constitutional duties whether it also violates a statute depending on what statute comes into play and what all the facts are."

One day after special counsel Robert Mueller made his first public comments on the Russia investigation and stressed he didn't exonerate President Donald Trump, Rep. Adam Schiff blasted the president and Attorney General William Barr, saying Barr should resign and should never have been confirmed to begin with.

"I think he's a very dangerous man," Schiff told an audience in Los Angeles.

The California Democrat, who chairs the House Intelligence Committee, also had stinging words for Trump.

"The president's conduct in my view is completely incompatible with fitness for office across many different levels," he said.

Schiff was circumspect, however, on the question of impeachment.

"Once you begin impeachment it carries a certain inexorable logic that carries through to its conclusion which is a vote on the House floor, and then a trial in the Senate," he said.

"And that will be an absorbing and wrenching experience for the whole country

He said the U.S. is in this dilemma, not just due to the president's conduct.

"It's because an entire political party has become a cult of personality around the president of  the United States and will not do its constitutional duty," he said.

Los Angeles, California - 30 May 2019

1. Wide of Rep. Adam Schiff and moderator, Los Angeles city attorney Mike Feuer

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"Now what makes Bill Barr so dangerous is that it is Bill Barr's view that the president could have shut down the Mueller investigation anytime he wanted because he thought it unfair. Now take a minute to let that sink in. Any president of the United States can stop any investigation into their criminal wrongdoing if they think it's unfair. That is a prescription for a president who is utterly above the law."

3. Mid of moderator and Rep. Adam Schiff on stage

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"I think he's a very dangerous man."

5. Wide of moderator and Rep. Adam Schiff on stage

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

(Moderator Mike Feuer) "You've been critical of the way the attorney general handled the Mueller Report. Should Barr resign? (Schiff)  Absolutely, he should resign. (Applause) And you know more than that he should have never been appointed and confirmed to begin with."

7. Wide of moderator and Schiff on stage

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"We knew, of course, that he had written this lengthy legal memorandum diatribe against Bob Mueller and against the obstruction investigation itself. He should have been disqualified on that basis alone."

9. Mid of moderator and Schiff on stage

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"Before we embark on something of this seriousness, I think the question is - is this the right thing for the country? And I'm not there yet, although the president seems to be doing everything in his power to get me there. You know one, one bridge that would be a bridge too far for me is if when the litigation is concluded, the president were to ignore a court order. That would be a bridge too far for me in terms of the present course."

11. Wide of moderator and Schiff on stage

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"The president's conduct in my view is completely incompatible with fitness for office across many different levels."

13. Wide of moderator and Schiff on stage  

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"I think there's a perception that if we declare we're in an impeachment proceeding that tomorrow all the sudden people begin to cooperate, including the administration. That is not likely to be the case."

15. Wide of Schiff and moderator

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"Once you begin impeachment it carries a certain inexorable logic that carries through to its conclusion which is a vote on the House floor, and then a trial in the Senate. And that will be an absorbing and wrenching experience for the whole country. So, I don't think we should be under the illusion that we can begin an inquiry only for the purpose of getting information. I think we have to understand where this leads us."

17. Wide of moderator and Schiff

18. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Adam Schiff, (D) California / Chair, House Intelligence Committee

"And we shouldn't lose sight of the reason why we are in this dilemma is not alone because of the president's corrupt conduct. It's because an entire political party has become a cult of personality around the president of  the United States and will not do its constitutional duty."

19. Wide of Schiff with members of audience on stage

Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said she wants the Senate to vote on a proposal to put restrictions on the president's ability to remove special counsel Robert Mueller.

Collins said she realizes President Donald Trump would never sign such a bill, but she said it would put pressure on him to let Mueller's investigation run its course.

Speaking in Brunswick, Maine, Collins said she's "very concerned" about the appointment of Matt Whitaker to serve as acting attorney general because of his comments about setting parameters for the probe into whether Trump's presidential campaign coordinated with Russia in 2016.

She said ousted Attorney General Jeff Sessions proved himself to be "an individual of great integrity" by recusing himself and allowing the sufficient resources for Mueller to complete the probe.

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

1. Former US Attorney General Jeff Sessions walking out of the Justice Department, waving at people as they applaud, NATS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"I'm very concerned about the appointment of Mr. (Matt) Whitaker to be the Acting Attorney General. Jeff Sessions was an individual of great integrity. He proved that time and time again. Despite the president putting tremendous pressure on him, he continued to recuse himself from any involvement in the Mueller investigation and under Rod Rosenstein's leadership, the Special Counsel has all the resources and that he has needed to follow the evidence wherever it may be may lead. I am concerned about comments that Mr. Whitaker has made about the Independent Counsel and the parameters of the investigation. For that reason, I believe that we should bring to the Senate floor soon a bill that would put restrictions on the ability of the president to be able to remove the Special Counsel. Now, I recognize the president is never gonna to sign such a bill but I think that a Senate debate and passage of the bill would send a very strong message to the president."

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

3. Sessions shaking hands with other men, including Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"Jeff Sessions and I were elected the same year to the Senate and although there were many, many issues on which we disagreed, I knew that he was a person of strength and integrity, and that was why I I supported his nomination; I introduced him at the nomination hearing. And I think that the people of the United States have seen that he is, in fact, a person of strength and integrity, given the tremendous pressure that he has been under from the White House. And yet, he has stood strong. It doesn't mean that I agree with him on certain issues or policies that he's implemented. But I knew that he would do what he thought was right and that he would not bend. And it's significant that in his letter of resignation, that he says 'As requested, I'm submitting my letter of resignation.'"

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

5. Sessions waving at crowd, NATS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"The fact that the career employees of the Justice Department all gathered around him to applaud him as he was leaving the Justice Department for the last day speaks to the respect that he earned from the civil servants working there."

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

7. Sessions entering vehicle

8. Pan right of crowd applauding

Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said she wants the Senate to vote on a proposal to put restrictions on the president's ability to remove special counsel Robert Mueller.

Collins said she realizes President Donald Trump would never sign such a bill, but she said it would put pressure on him to let Mueller's investigation run its course.

Speaking in Brunswick, Maine, Collins said she's "very concerned" about the appointment of Matt Whitaker to serve as acting attorney general because of his comments about setting parameters for the probe into whether Trump's presidential campaign coordinated with Russia in 2016.

She said ousted Attorney General Jeff Sessions proved himself to be "an individual of great integrity" by recusing himself and allowing the sufficient resources for Mueller to complete the probe.

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

1. Former US Attorney General Jeff Sessions walking out of the Justice Department, waving at people as they applaud, NATS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"I'm very concerned about the appointment of Mr. (Matt) Whitaker to be the Acting Attorney General. Jeff Sessions was an individual of great integrity. He proved that time and time again. Despite the president putting tremendous pressure on him, he continued to recuse himself from any involvement in the Mueller investigation and under Rod Rosenstein's leadership, the Special Counsel has all the resources and that he has needed to follow the evidence wherever it may be may lead. I am concerned about comments that Mr. Whitaker has made about the Independent Counsel and the parameters of the investigation. For that reason, I believe that we should bring to the Senate floor soon a bill that would put restrictions on the ability of the president to be able to remove the Special Counsel. Now, I recognize the president is never gonna to sign such a bill but I think that a Senate debate and passage of the bill would send a very strong message to the president."

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

3. Sessions shaking hands with other men, including Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"Jeff Sessions and I were elected the same year to the Senate and although there were many, many issues on which we disagreed, I knew that he was a person of strength and integrity, and that was why I I supported his nomination; I introduced him at the nomination hearing. And I think that the people of the United States have seen that he is, in fact, a person of strength and integrity, given the tremendous pressure that he has been under from the White House. And yet, he has stood strong. It doesn't mean that I agree with him on certain issues or policies that he's implemented. But I knew that he would do what he thought was right and that he would not bend. And it's significant that in his letter of resignation, that he says 'As requested, I'm submitting my letter of resignation.'"

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

5. Sessions waving at crowd, NATS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brunswick, Maine - 9 November 2018

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Susan Collins, (R) Maine:

"The fact that the career employees of the Justice Department all gathered around him to applaud him as he was leaving the Justice Department for the last day speaks to the respect that he earned from the civil servants working there."

POOL

Washington - 7 November 2018

7. Sessions entering vehicle

8. Pan right of crowd applauding

The incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee says Attorney General nominee William Barr has confidence in special counsel Robert Mueller (MUHL'-ur) and will let Mueller finish his Russia investigation.

Sen. Lindsey Graham says Barr has a "very, very high opinion" of Mueller.

The South Carolina Republican was among the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who met with Barr on Wednesday as Barr made the rounds on Capitol Hill before his confirmation hearing next week.

President Donald Trump pushed out Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year and nominated Barr to replace him.

Trump's critics have warned that Barr may try to curtail Mueller's investigation, given that the president has repeatedly called it a "witch hunt."

And Barr wrote an unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year critiquing Mueller's investigation

Washington DC - 9 January 2019

1. Cutaway of Graham and Barr in his office

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"I think the main thing people want to know is what's his view of the Mueller investigation. And I can assure you based on what I've heard, that he has a high opinion of Mr. Mueller, believes that Mr. Mueller is doing a professional job, will do a professional job. Be fair to the president of the country as a whole and has no reason for Mr. Mueller to stop doing his job and is commited to allowing Mr. Mueller to finish."

++SEPARATED BY WHITE FLASH++

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"As to the President I ask him, he said some pretty tough things. Mr. Barr said he's the one on the receiving end of this, he is sort of the accused and from the president's point of view, I think he believes it is a witch hunt and doesn't believe he did anything wrong and I can remember the Clinton days, when Ken Starr was part of a right-wing conspiracy. That is just sort of the way these things go."

++SEPARATED BY WHITE FLASH++

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R) South Carolina, Incoming Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

"He had absolutely no indication he was going to tell Bob Mueller what to do, or how to do it. He is confident that Mr. Mueller will pursue the facts and the law."

President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general told senators Tuesday "it is vitally important" that special counsel Robert Mueller be allowed to complete his Russia investigation

William Barr said at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing that it is in "the best interest of everyone...that this matter be resolved," adding, "the country needs a credible  resolution to these issues."

Barr said he believes Congress and the public must learn the results.

He also insisted that Trump never sought any promises, assurances or commitments before selecting him to be the country's chief law enforcement officer.

POOL

Washington, DC - 15 January 2019

1. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"The attorney general must ensure that the administration of justice the enforcement of the law is above and away from politics. Nothing could be more destructive of our system of government of the rule of law or the Department of Justice as an institution than any toleration of political interference with the enforcement of the law."

2. Cutaway of committee members

3. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"President Trump has sought no assurances, promises or commitments from me of any kind, either express or implied, and I have not given him any other than that I would run the department with professionalism and integrity."

4. Wide shot of hearing

8 . SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General Nominee:

"I believe it is vitally important that the special counsel be allowed to complete his investigation. I have known Bob Mueller for 30 years. We work closely together throughout my previous tenure at the Department of Justice. We've been friends since and I have the utmost respect for Bob and his distinguished record of public service. And when he was named special counsel I said his selection was good news and that knowing him, I had confidence he would handle the matter properly and I still have that confidence today. Given his public actions to date, I expect that the special counsel is well along in his investigation. At the same time, the president has been steadfast that he was not involved in any collusion with Russian attempts to interfere in the election. I believe it is in the best interests of everyone, the president ,Congress and the American people, that this matter be resolved by allowing the special counsel to complete his work. The country needs a credible resolution to these issues and if confirmed, I will not permit partisan politics, personal interests or any other improper consideration to interfere with this or any other investigation. I will follow the special counsel regulations scrupulously and in good faith and on my watch Bob will be allowed to finish his work."

Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker tells Congressional lawmakers that there has been no change in the overall management of the special counsel's Russia investigation.

"At no time as the White House asked for, nor have I provided, any promises or commitments concerning the Special Counsel's investigation or any other investigation, " Whitaker told the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee on Friday in his opening remarks.

Congressional Democrats had been eager to press Whitaker, during his first testimony to Congress, on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation.

Whitaker has been supervising special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation after rejecting the advice of career ethics officials to step aside out of an abundance of caution.

The testimony comes as Whitaker is likely winding down his tenure leading the Justice Department with the almost certain confirmation of Attorney General nominee William Barr in the coming weeks.

POOL

Washington - 8 February 2019

1. Pan, acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker walking into hearing

2. Side, hearing gaveled into session

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, Judiciary Committee Chairman, Democrat - New York:

"When career officials that the Department recommended that you take steps to mitigate your apparent conflicts of interest when they told you that your public criticism of the special counsel was bad for the department and bad for the administration of justice you ignored them. You decided that your private interests in overseeing this particular investigation and perhaps others from which you should have been recused was more important than the integrity of the department. The question that this committee must now ask is why? Why did President Trump choose to replace Attorney General Sessions with an outspoken critic of the special counsel instead of with any number of qualified individuals who had already received Senate confirmation? Why did you ignore the career officials who went to extraordinary lengths to tell you that your continued involvement in the Special Counsel's work would undermine the credibility of the Department of Justice?"

4. Close-up Whitaker

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, Judiciary Committee Chairman, Democrat - New York:

"I also take issue with your written testimony which we did not receive until almost midnight last night, when you suggest that you quote will continue the long standing executive branch policy and practice of not disclosing information that may be subject to executive privilege close quote. In other words you reserve the right to end to refuse to answer the question forever. That's not how it works."

6. Close-up Whitaker

7. Side, Ranking member Collins speaking

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Doug Collins, Republican - Georgia:

"If this is the way we're going to go, then we'll have plenty of stunts. We are going to have plenty of theatrics.  Bringing your popcorn.  I'm thinking about maybe we just got a former scene in the back because that's what this is becoming. It is becoming a show.  When your presence was here,  you were coming voluntarily. You've always said you're coming voluntarily. So we had the show yesterday. We now have the curtain dropped down and Mr. Whitaker, I guess your confirmation hearing's here. You've only got five days left on the job or six days left on the job. We could join together with the chairman to say Mr. Barr come in here because you've been actually the Attorney General Mr. Barr has been the attorney general he's been before this committee before we could have had substantive hearings but no we're going to have a show."

9. Side view of hearing

10. Various views, Whitaker being sworn in

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Matthew Whitaker, acting Attorney General:

"At no time has the White House asked for, nor have I provided any promises or commitments concerning the special counsel's investigation or any other investigation. Since becoming acting attorney general, I have run the Department of Justice with fidelity to the law and to the Constitution. During my time as the leader of the Department of Justice the Department has complied with the special counsel regulations and there has been no change in how the department has worked with the special counsel's office. Over the past day the department and the committee have exchanged letters concerning the respective prerogatives of the legislative and executive branches. I am pleased that we are able to reach an agreement that allows me to appear here voluntarily. I am pleased also that we agreed that each branch would seek to accommodate each other and that if we have differences we will try to work them out in good faith before resorting to subpoenas or other former--formal legal processes. I will answer the committee's questions as best I can but I will continue the long standing executive branch practice of not disclosing information that may be subject to executive privilege, such as the contents of conversations with the president."

12. Side view of hearing