1/ Bill Barr is undoubtedly very highly qualified to be AG. He is also undoubtedly committed to the unitary executive. See, e.g., justice.gov/file/24286/dow… and his fierce opposition in the 1990s to the Independent Counsel Statute. wapo.st/2rnsIiq?tid=ss…
2/ The current Special Counsel regs do not implicate the unitary executive problems of the 1990s statute. But one with a disposition toward a strong unitary executive would likely want (at least) a very tight rein on an “independent counsel” investigating the President.
3/ He would also likely take a broad view of Article II & thus a dim view of claims that POTUS obstructed justice if the acts in question were plausibly related to the exercise of an Article II power (including supervision of prosecutions and the conduct of foreign relations ).
4/ I am not saying that Barr actually holds these views – I have no idea what his actual views are on these matters.
5/ If Barr is nominated, Mueller may well be done or near-done before Barr’s confirmation hearings. But if Mueller is not done, it will be fascinating to see how Barr handles questions about the Mueller investigation and the Order and regulations under which Mueller is acting.
6/ Recall that Congress extracted a pledge from Elliot Richardson, during his confirmation hearings, that he would not interfere with the Special Prosecutor. Richardson honored that pledge by resigning when Nixon ordered him to fire Archibald Cox.
