is the us attorney general obligated to do what an unlawful president says

Can the new president elect to keep or remove US Attorneys?

Feb 16, 2019 · The answer largely depends on whether President Trump continues to see the attorney general as “his” attorney general. And make no mistake, whatever the president thinks, the courts, if called ...

Who is the Attorney General of the US?

The United States attorney general ( AG) leads the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief lawyer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all legal matters. The attorney general is a statutory member of the Cabinet of the United ...

Is it weird to ask an attorney general to leave office?

Apr 04, 2022 · Email. Share. TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody is bringing a multistate action against President Joe Biden for failing to enforce federal immigration law. The attorneys general of Alabama and Georgia joined Attorney General Moody in a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief, arguing that the president is failing to perform the duties …

Is a US Attorney a political office?

Mar 03, 2020 · The president is correct about his constitutional powers, but he should recognize that publicly criticizing the attorney general on a matter of law enforcement is …

Does the U.S. Attorney General report to the President?

What powers does the U.S. Attorney General have?

Does the Department of Justice answer to the President?

Can actions by a president be declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court?

Who can remove the attorney general?

Who appoints the US attorney general?

What can a president do with an executive order?

Are executive orders constitutional?

How much power does the president have?

Can Congress override the Supreme Court?

Under what authority did the Supreme Court declared the act of President unconstitutional?

How can the president limit the power of the Supreme Court?

What is the job of the Attorney General?

The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United Stateson all legal matters. The attorney general is a statutory member of the Cabinet of the United States.

When does the Attorney General have to resign?

Presidential transition[edit] It is the practice for the attorney general, along with the other Cabinet secretaries and high-level political appointees of the President, to tender a resignation with effect on the Inauguration Day(January 20) of a new president.

Is "general" a noun?

The title "attorney general" is an example of a noun (attorney) followed by a postpositive adjective(general).[8]". General" is a description of the type of attorney, not a title or rank in itself (as it would be in the military).[8]

Is the President correct about his constitutional powers?

The president is correct about his constitutional powers, but he should recognize that publicly criticizing the attorney general on a matter of law enforcement is not the same as criticizing the secretary of veterans affairs for lapses in health care for veterans. The difference is its effect on the rule of law, which is not in the Constitution, ...

Why is the United States a law abiding country?

The belief among Americans that the law is applied fairly is one of the reasons the United States is a law abiding country. So comments by the president about how the attorney general is proceeding in a particular case raises questions about whether the president is interfering with the judicial process and the even handedness ...

Who sided with Barr?

That is why the most ardent supporters of Trump in Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, have sided with Barr, saying that the president should listen to his attorney general. But Trump apparently does not see it this way.

Insurrection Act

This law prohibits anyone who "incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto." In the first place, this law has almost never been invoked. The leading precedent on the statute comes from a case from 1863!

Election fraud

This law bans "attempts to deprive or defraud residents of a State of a fair and impartially conducted election process, by . [the] tabulation of ballots known by the person to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent." Under this theory, by instructing his attorney general to say there was fraud in Georgia, Trump committed this crime.

Obstruction of justice

This law makes it a crime to corruptly obstruct, influence or impede any official proceeding or attempt to do so. Once more, the issue would be intent -- here reflected in the word "corruptly." In his January 6 speech, Trump encouraged the crowd to march to Capitol Hill but he did not explicitly encourage violence.

Hatch Act

The Hatch Act prohibits federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity. The president himself is explicitly exempt from the strictures of the Hatch Act, but could be charged with the provision that makes it "unlawful for any person to intimidate, threaten, command, or coerce" a federal employee to "engage in ...

Conspiracy to defraud the United States

This broad provision, much loved by prosecutors, makes it a crime to "conspire to commit any offense against the United States, or to defraud the United States." The first part of this law runs into the same problem as the specific statutes noted above -- that it's difficult to prove an underlying crime.

Should Congress pass a law that prevents DOJ from being used to protect the president from federal or state investigations into

Congress should pass a law that prevents DOJ from being used to protect the president from federal or state investigations into private conduct, including the conduct of a presidential campaign, or to side with the president’s business interests in civil litigation.

What should Congress do to prevent DOJ from being used?

Congress should pass a law that prevents DOJ from being used to protect the president from federal or state investigations into private conduct , including the conduct of a presidential campaign, or to side with the president’s business interests in civil litigation. Congress also should limit DOJ efforts to withhold information from Congress itself.

Why is Barr using the Department of Justice?

Attorney General William Barr is using the United States Department of Justice, at taxpayer expense, to help Trump block investigations of Trump’s private conduct. This is wrong. DOJ exists to represent the interests of the United States, not to defend its president regarding his or her private conduct. Congress should pass a law that prevents DOJ ...

Why does the DOJ exist?

DOJ exists to represent the interests of the United States, not to defend its president regarding his or her private conduct. Congress should pass a law that prevents DOJ from being used to protect the president from federal or state investigations into private conduct, including the conduct of a presidential campaign, ...

How often should the Attorney General testify before Congress?

Congress also should amend other statutes to enhance transparency and accountability, such as requiring high-ranking administration officials, including the attorney general, to publicly testify at least twice a year before each house of Congress and to answer questions subject to a narrow executive privilege.

Should an inspector general be removed?

An inspector general should not be removed simply for doing his or her job. Protecting federal and state criminal investigations, and congressional oversight, from political interference by DOJ should garner bipartisan support. The president will not always be of one party, nor will one party always control Congress.

Will the President always be one party?

The president will not always be of one party, nor will one party always control Congress. Barr has demonstrated how to turn DOJ into a tool to hide information about the president and his associates. Congress must reform DOJ to prevent it from ever happening again.

What did the change in the law do to the Attorney General?

The change in the law undermined the confirmation authority of the Senate and gave the Attorney General greater appointment powers than the President, since the President's U.S. Attorney appointees are required to be confirmed by the Senate and those of the Attorney General did not require confirmation.

Who was the DOJ attorney general in 2006?

Attorney General Gonzales, in a confidential memorandum dated March 1, 2006, delegated authority to senior DOJ staff Monica Goodling and Kyle Sampson to hire and dismiss political appointees and some civil service positions.

Why were some of the attorneys targeted for dismissal?

Allegations were that some of the attorneys were targeted for dismissal to impede investigations of Republican politicians or that some were targeted for their failure to initiate investigations that would damage Democratic politicians or hamper Democratic-leaning voters.

What was the process used to fire the first seven attorneys and two others dismissed around the same time?

A subsequent report by the Justice Department Inspector General in October 2008 found that the process used to fire the first seven attorneys and two others dismissed around the same time was "arbitrary", "fundamentally flawed" and "raised doubts about the integrity of Department prosecution decisions".

Why are emails about the firing of attorneys lost?

White House spokesman Scott Stanzel stated that some of the emails that had involved official correspondence relating to the firing of attorneys may have been lost because they were conducted on Republican party accounts and not stored properly. "Some official e-mails have potentially been lost and that is a mistake the White House is aggressively working to correct." said Stanzel, a White House spokesman. Stonzel said that they could not rule out the possibility that some of the lost emails dealt with the firing of U.S. attorneys. For example, J. Scott Jennings, an aide to Karl Rove communicated with Justice Department officials "concerning the appointment of Tim Griffin, a former Rove aide, as U.S. attorney in Little Rock, according to e-mails released in March, 2007. For that exchange, Jennings, although working at the White House, used an e-mail account registered to the Republican National Committee, where Griffin had worked as a political opposition researcher."

Who resigned from the White House?

Officials who resigned. Alberto Gonzales, United States Attorney General, former White House Counsel. Kyle Sampson, Chief of Staff to the Attorney General. Michael A. Battle, Director of the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys. Michael Elston, Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General.

What was the Inspector General Report on the 2008 firings?

On September 29, 2008 the Justice Department's Inspector General (IG) released a report on the matter that found most of the firings were politically motivated and improper.

Can a president be removed from office for high crimes?

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Constitution explains how a president can be removed from office for “high crimes and misdemeanors” by Congress using the impeachment process. But the Constitution is silent on whether a president can face criminal prosecution in court, and the U.S. Supreme Court has not directly addressed the question.

Is a sitting president immune to criminal charges?

The department reaffirmed the policy in a 2000 memo, saying court decisions in the intervening years had not changed its conclusion that a sitting president is “constitutionally immune” from indictment and criminal prosecution. It concluded that criminal charges against a president would “violate the constitutional separation ...

Can a sitting president be indicted?

The U.S. Justice Department has a decades-old policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted, indicating that criminal charges against Trump would be unlikely, according to legal experts. Here is an explanation of the rationale behind the Justice Department policy and whether it applies to Mueller.

Did Starr indict Clinton?

Starr did not indict Clinton in his investigation involving the president’s relationship with a White House intern named Monica Lewinsky, but lawyers in his office concluded he had the authority to do so, according to a once-secret internal memo made public by the New York Times in 2017.