“Members of [Checks & Balances] have sharply denounced what they described as abuses of power by Mr. Trump .... The speech by Mr. Barr ... , in which he argued that the president had never overstepped his authority, so alarmed them that they felt compelled to push back publicly.”
“Checks & Balances is made up of Republican and conservative lawyers, including some who served in recent administrations. George T. Conway III, one of Mr. Trump’s most vocal critics, ... is one of the group’s most prominent members.”
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“Mr. Barr’s view on executive power is a misreading of the unitary executive theory, said Charles Fried, a Checks & Balances member and Harvard Law professor who endorsed the theory while he was solicitor general during the Reagan administration.”
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“[Barr’s] interpretation of history ‘has no factual basis,’ Checks & Balances wrote ... , including the claim that ‘the founders shared ... his vision of an unchecked president, and ... that this view was dominant until ... a few decades ago.’”
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“The group said that the ‘only imaginable basis’ for Mr. Barr’s conclusion that Mr. Trump did not obstruct the Russia investigation ‘was his legal view that the president is given total control over all investigations by the Constitution.’”
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“Mr. Fried [elaborated:] ‘Conservatism is respect for the rule of law. It is respect for tradition. ... The people who claim they’re conservatives today are demanding loyalty to this completely lawless, ignorant, foul-mouthed president.’”
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“Mr. Gerson echoed that sentiment. ‘It’s important for conservatives to speak up,’ he said. ‘This administration is anything but conservative.’”
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