Attorney General William Barr Remarks at Hillsdale College

Attorney General William Barr delivered remarks and took questions at a Constitution Day event hosted by Hillsdale College. Mr. Barr defended his actions during his time in the Trump administration, opined on the state of the rule of law, and blasted governors for state lockdowns and other executive actions during the coronavirus pandemic. He compared those governors' actions to “house arrest” and claimed they were violations of civil liberties. “Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, it’s the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history,” he said. Mr. Barr also disputed criticism that he had interfered in the judicial process in cases involving individuals with ties to President Trump. He argued that exercising prosecutorial discretion was the attorney general’s job and that lower-level attorneys' decisions were not “sacrosanct.” close