Former Attorney General William Barr believes the Georgia election indictment of former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants is “too broad” and helps “feed the narrative” that he is being “victimized.”
Mr. Barr made the comments in an interview with Fox News on Aug. 17.
President Trump was charged with 13 counts in Monday’s indictment bought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in relation to his efforts to dispute the results of the 2020 election in the state.
The charges listed in the indictment include a violation of Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO Act), solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree, and conspiracy to commit filing of false documents, among others.
The latest indictment marks the fourth bought against President Trump so far this year.
He and his co-defendants listed in the indictment have denied any wrongdoing.
“I’m not happy with the Georgia case,” Mr. Barr said. “It’s [an] excessive case that is, you know, make it look like people are piling on and being excessive to Trump and feed the narrative that he’s being victimized here. And I also think there’s merit in the point that this is a case that I don’t think can be triable before the election. It’s just too sprawling.”
Mr. Barr, a Republican who served as attorney general for the second half of the Trump administration, also said he believes the latest case against President Trump will not go on trial before the 2024 presidential election.
Trump’s Mounting Legal Woes
President Trump, who is currently leading in Republican 2024 presidential polls, has vowed to continue campaigning regardless of the outcome of his various trials.President Trump is also facing multiple other legal battles, including in Florida over his alleged mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort—led by special counsel Jack Smith—and also his efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 election and the violence that erupted during the Jan. 6, 2021 breach of the U.S. Capitol.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has also sued President Trump and the Trump Organization, and said in a court filing earlier this month that the case is “ready for trial.”
She also plans to try all 19 defendants together.
‘Political Hit Job’
“I think the two federal cases will be tried. And they are I think the responsible cases. They’re far more focused and I think they can be and will be tried before [the elections],” Mr. Barr said of President Trump’s mounting legal battles. “The New York case is, you know, obviously a political hit job. And in my opinion, it’s a joke. I think at the end of the day, that may not be tried. I think at the end of the day, that may not be tried, it could just be pushed out because I think Bragg would be worried about actually bringing it to trial.”However, Mr. Barr said he still expects the two federal cases against the 45th president to be tried before the 2024 election, noting that the president will not simply be granted immunity because of the upcoming elections.
“These investigations have been going on for a while. Everyone knew about them even before he announced his candidacy,” Mr. Barr said. “So if there’s a chance to get it resolved before the election, it should be because the American people should know these are crimes that involve or potential crimes involve moral turpitude.”
President Trump has repeatedly called the indictments against him a “political witch hunt.”
On Aug. 17, he took to Truth Social where he said he hoped that all Republican district attorneys and attorneys general throughout the nation are “closely watching the tremendous weaponization of ‘justice’ that is being utilized against me!”
President Biden has repeatedly denied allegations of bribery.
