U.S. Attorney General William Barr said the “law has broken down” in the hands of prosecutors and that DOJ heads, checked by the American people, should oversee these unelected prosecutors to uphold law and order in the nation.
The executive branch has virtually unchecked power in bringing charges, Barr noted. “That means discretion is vested in the executive to determine when to exercise prosecution power,” Barr said to a “legal-sized” crowd at Hillsdale College’s Constitution Day Celebration on Wednesday evening,
The only question is: When should the branch use its prosecutorial power? The answer is left in the hands of prosecutors who, according to Barr, prioritize cases that they “can get,” meaning win, instead of the most important ones to prosecute.
“Federal prosecutors possess tremendous power,” Barr said. “Power that is necessary to enforce our laws and punish wrongdoing…but power that carries inherent potential for abuse.”
Such abuse is commonplace and usually takes shape in politically targeted prosecutions, he said.
“I’d like to be able to say that we don’t see headhunting in the Department of Justice,” he said. “That would not be truthful. I see it every day.”
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