Alabama Sen. Doug Jones announced his support for attorney general nominee William Barr as the Democrat works to stay afloat in a state President Donald Trump carried in 2016 by large margins.
“Barr assured me of his commitment to protecting civil rights, including the vigorous enforcement of voting rights protections,” Jones wrote in a tweet Thursday.
He went on to tell his Twitter followers Barr assured him Trump is not above the law.
“I have concluded that Mr. Barr is qualified for the position & his record strongly suggests he will exercise independent judgment & uphold the best interests of the DoJ. I will vote to confirm Mr. Barr as AG of the United States,” he added.
After thorough consideration, I have concluded that Mr. Barr is qualified for the position & his record strongly suggests he will exercise independent judgment & uphold the best interests of the DoJ. I will vote to confirm Mr. Barr as AG of the United States.
— Doug Jones (@SenDougJones) February 7, 2019
Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted Thursday to advance Barr, who served as attorney general under former President George H. W. Bush. His confirmation is expected to draw a bitter partisan fight, especially given how Barr would oversee the special counsel investigation.
The 12 Republicans on the committee voted for Barr, while all 10 Democrats opposed.
Meanwhile, Barr pledged during his hearing to release “as much as I can” of the special counsel findings. He also said he would provide special counsel Robert Mueller with the resources and time to finish his probe of Russian intervention in the 2016 election. He said he would resign “if someone tried to stop a bonafide, lawful investigation to try to cover up wrongdoing.”
Jones has emerged as a fierce critic of Trump, despite representing a state the president won by nearly 30 points in 2016.
Jones, who barely defeated Republican Roy Moore during a bruising special election in 2017, found himself in an unenviable position during the partial government shutdown: He opposed the president’s demands for wall-funding while representing a red state chalked with federal workers who support Trump’s immigration policies.
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