Former Attorney Bill Barr is speaking out on the bombshell Supreme Court opinion draft leak saying Chief Justice John Roberts may need to appoint a special counsel to uncover the identity of the leaker.
The Daily Wire reports:
“I was flabbergasted,” Barr said, reacting to the leak. “It really is unprecedented. Our institutions have become increasingly politicized, but I never imagined this could happen to the Supreme Court, which has always protected its confidentiality. And for someone to let this out in order to influence the final decision is really beyond the pale.”
Barr said that the leaker could potentially be prosecuted for obstruction of justice.
“I think the chief would have had the option, and perhaps he still will, to appoint a special counsel. Not in the classical criminal sense, but the court can appoint a counsel and he could bring in a former U.S. attorney or someone with a criminal law background. And I’m sure he would get the support he needed from the FBI or any other law enforcement agency,” he said.
In the interview, Barr pivoted to note that many have misunderstood what exactly would happen if the leaked draft were to be made final. Most Democrats and liberals have parroted claims that abortion would be banned outright in America, however, if Roe were overturned the outcome would actually result in greater authority on the matter being passed to states.
“That opinion, if it were to be the final opinion, isn’t saying you have to prohibit abortion, it’s saying this is a matter for the states to decide, and a very high proportion of our states are going to permit abortions. There may be reasonable regulation and time periods, but it’s not going to prohibit it nationwide,” he said.
“And what we hear is, well, somebody in Idaho is going to have to go to California to get an abortion. Well, that’s what we get living in a federal republic where states are sovereign and can set the rules for the people of their state,” he continued. “And if people don’t like the rules in Idaho, they don’t necessarily have to move, but they might have to go to California to get an abortion.”
Barr said he believes the leak likely came from a more liberal law clerk hoping to impact a judge with a less-firm view on the case.
“I don’t think a conservative clerk would have put this out with the idea that this would somehow shore up a wobbly judge. This is gonna be a controversial decision if it came out,” Barr said.
