Kellyanne Conway: Dems should start showing Barr some respect

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway on Wednesday defended Attorney General William Barr, who came under fire on Capitol Hill for his handling of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on the Russia investigation.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Conway attacked Democratic senators who grilled Barr during a tense hearing over his decision to release a summary of the report that Mueller said did not fully capture his findings.

{mosads}“To impugn the integrity, reputation, character and competence of Bill Barr — and coming from certain people who are doing that — is really rich,” Conway said. “Bill Barr is the attorney general of the United States. I think people should start showing him some respect.”

The comments came shortly after Barr testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee that he released the bottom-line conclusions of the investigation because the public was in a “high state of agitation” and “former government officials were confidently predicting that the president or members of his family would be indicted.”

Barr’s testimony followed the explosive revelation that Mueller wrote to the attorney general in late March that his summary to Congress about the Russia probe “did not fully capture the context, nature, and substance” of the special counsel’s findings and, as a result, “there is now public confusion about critical aspects of the results of our investigation.”

Conway, however, chalked up the stir over Mueller’s letter to sour grapes among Democrats.

“I think some people, respectfully, are starting to sound a little bit desperate, especially the partisans up on Capitol Hill,” she said. “They must be mad at Bob Mueller for not doing their bidding.”

The attorney general’s four-page summary stated that Mueller did not find that President Trump colluded with Russia’s election interference and did not determine Trump obstructed justice, while providing few details about special counsel’s findings. 

Mueller’s 448-page report, released in a redacted form weeks later, recounted in detail several damaging episodes that were investigated for obstruction.

Several top lawmakers have called on Mueller to testify before Congress about the investigation.

Conway said Mueller could do so “if he wants to” but suggested it would be unnecessary.

“We’ve heard it all. What else do you want to hear?” she asked.

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