This is a very good point from @steve_vladeck. The appointment itself does not comply with the regs. If Barr can appoint someone pursuant to his general statutory appointment authority and apply the regs, it is very likely that the next attorney general can rescind the order.
That is, if the appointment is not bound by the regs, presumably rescinding the appointment is not either—and thus does not require good cause. If, by contrast, the appointment *is* bound by the regs, it violates them and thus can be rescinded as unlawful.

I think.
Ok, having looked at this a little more carefully now, here's a first read:
(1) The appointment is not made pursuant to the special counsel regulations but to Barr's general statutory authorities as attorney general:
(2) Barr then applies the special counsel regulations to the appointment:
Except that (3) he does NOT apply the provision of the special counsel regulations that govern the appointment of the special counsel and require that the SC come from outside the department. This provision is 28 CFR 600.3:
In other words, Barr used general statutory authority to appoint someone and then by order applied the regulations—including the regulations that limit the special counsel's removal—to that appointment.

Very clever.
Too clever, in fact. At least as I read it, and I'll be curious if @steve_vladeck disagrees with me, all the next attorney general has to do to get rid of this investigation—if he or she wants to do so—is rescind this Barr order applying the special counsel regulations to the SC.
At that point, Durham becomes a regular dude appointed by the attorney general to investigate some stuff and can be removed from that position at will. In the alternative, the next attorney general could simply amend this order and make clear that the entire slate of...
...special counsel regulations apply—and then remove Durham on grounds that his appointment is not, in fact, compatible with those regulations.
The best course, in the real world, may be to let him finish his probe. But if the next attorney general wants to end this thing, I think he or she will have ample latitude to do so.
That's all I got on quick inspection.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Benjamin Wittes

Benjamin Wittes Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @benjaminwittes

2 Dec
Wow, this puts it as well and as succinctly as I've ever seen it put. Gonna remember the words: "I feel anxious for civic virtue in an era of mis- and disinformation." They capture a lot.
Read 4 tweets
26 Nov
A Thanksgiving story to warm your pluralistic hearts:
It was the early 1990s, the days before Washington DC had meters in taxis. A famine was raging in Somalia. And I was working in my first job out of college: a brief stint working for an organization that focused on the Middle East peace process.
I was heading to my parents’ house. I was standing in front of a mailbox near my office. I was holding a stack of papers with Hebrew writing on them. I hailed a cab.
Read 19 tweets
25 Nov
And by disputed, the Gentlewoman from Colorado means freakin’ false!
@DanCrenshawTX this statement you made is not constitutionally defensible, as @nancyleong gently intimates. You should not peddle in such nonsense.
FYI @OrinKerr
A prosecution is neither a search nor a seizure. It may be that SEARCHING someone’s house to determine if she is celebrating Thanksgiving with too much family would not be a reasonable search. And it may be that one could make religious liberty or due process claims...
Read 4 tweets
22 Nov
Bolero is a neato warhorse, but it is actually one of Ravel's less impressive works. I remember at Oberlin wandering into @CarlaKihlstedt's practice room when she was practicing the "blues" movement from his sonata for violin and piano. It blew my mind. I've loved Ravel since.
Here's @JoshuaBellMusic playing it with @jeremydenk, who was also at Oberlin with us:
The rest of the sonata is baller too.
Read 4 tweets
22 Nov
Lisa Monaco would be an excellent choice for attorney geberal. Unlike Yates, she has not been on a lot of people's lists in rumoring about the role. It's good that she *is* apparently on Biden's list. She is diversely qualified. She is also a very serious person.
The reason, speaking candidly, that she has not been on my list is that I have assumed the incumbent president was going to fire Chris Wray and that Lisa would be a leading candidate for FBI Director. She would be excellent in either role.
Incidentally, the FBI Director role is a much harder one to fill than the attorney general. There are many fewer people qualified to do that job. Lisa is VERY well qualified that role. So if Biden expects Wray to be removed or expects to remove him, he might plausibly...
Read 5 tweets
21 Nov
Does anyone seriously believe that senators would be lining up to preemptively oppose @AmbassadorRice if she looked a little more like, say, Tom Donilon?
She is overwhelmingly qualified. The reasons for opposition to her--at least as I understand them--are nonsense.
So to all senators who are lining up to denounce her, I issue a challenge: articulate clearly why you think she is not an appropriate nominee. I'm open to persuasion here. Really. But if you're going to declare an overwhelmingly well-qualified black woman as DOA as a nominee...
...you should able to make a clear case based on disqualifying facts, positions, or views.

So what is it?
Read 7 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!