The Attorney General of the United States heads the Department of Justice. In that role, he supervises every United States Attorney. The USAs, as we call them, are prosecutors of crimes against federal laws. He is also titular head of the federal law enforcement agencies, the most prominent of which is the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The AG is also a member of the president’s cabinet, seventh in line to become POTUS in case of catastrophe. The current AG, William Barr, is probably sixth in line because the Secretary of Defense is in an “acting” capacity and therefore probably ineligible because he has never been subjected to the advice and consent of the Senate. As a cabinet member, the AG is called upon to advise the POTUS on matters within his expertise and to carry out the policies relating to criminal justice defined by the POTUS.
These two roles may conflict.
In a nation that honors the rule of law, the conflict is always resolved in favor of the law enforcement function and against the political function. In an autocratic nation, the political function would always take precedence because law enforcement exists primarily to support executive power.
Gen . Barr’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee is one month off April Fools Day so I need not announce that I am not fooling. I just wish I were fooling. The Attorney…
