Feinstein Requests Answers from Barr, Rosenstein on Barr Memo Against Mueller Investigation

Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today requested that William Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein answer key questions about Barr’s 19-page memorandum against Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation.

The letter to Barr is available here and the letter to Rosenstein is available here.

Full text of the letter to Barr follows:

December 21, 2018

William P. Barr
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
655 15th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20005

Dear Mr. Barr:

Before the hearing on your nomination to be Attorney General, as the Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I am writing to request additional information about a June 8, 2018, memorandum that you wrote to Department of Justice officials regarding Special Robert Counsel Mueller's obstruction of justice investigation.

I read your memorandum with great surprise. In my twenty-five years reviewing nominations as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I have never seen a nominee write such an in-depth legal memorandum for no reason. Your memorandum is not an informal opinion piece or casual commentary; rather, it is a lengthy, detailed legal argument with pointed conclusions.

Your decision to write this memorandum raises several questions, and I ask that you respond in writing no later than December 27, 2018:

1. Did anyone request that you write the memorandum? If so, who and why?
   
   
2. If the memorandum was not requested, why did you write it?
   
   
3. News repm1s indicate that you also shared the memorandum with the President’s personal lawyers. Is that accurate?  Who received a copy of the memo?
   
   
4. Did you write the memorandum yourself or were others involved?  If so, who?
   
   
5. Have you spoken to President Trump, anyone associated with the White House, or the President's legal team about the memorandum or its contents? If so, with whom did you speak and why?
   
   
6. Have you spoken with anyone at the Department of Justice about the memorandum or its contents?
   
   
7. Was there any follow up from anyone regarding your memorandum?

I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you in advance for your prompt attention to these questions.

Sincerely,
Dianne Feinstein