Former US attorney spills the beans on 'thuggish' Bill Barr's interference in SDNY cases

In his book "Holding the Line: Inside the Nation’s Preeminent US Attorney’s Office and Its Battle with the Trump Justice Department,” former U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman makes his case that former Attorney General Bill Barr put his thumb on the scales in cases that might reflect on Donald Trump.

In a review of the book by fellow former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade, McQuade highlights an assortment of conflicts that Berman -- who headed up the high-profile Southern District of New York office -- had with Barr as well as middlemen working on orders from the top.

Using Barr's bungled attempt to rid himself of Berman -- that included issuing a public statement that Berman was stepping down after he turned down a job change -- which Berman immediately disputed, the attorney wrote about butting heads with Barr on several cases when he believed the former AG was acting like he was Donald Trump's personal advocate.

Wit McQuade writing, "Berman knew all along he was living on borrowed time at the Southern District of New York, given his numerous earlier run-ins with the DOJ over what he deemed were inappropriate orders from department officials," she related that things grew worse after Barr took over.

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"In September of that year, Berman refused to sign the DOJ’s legal briefs in Trump’s subpoena battle with Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. Vance was investigating the role Trump and the Trump Organization played in payments made to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal shortly before the 2016 election," McQuade wrote. "The DOJ was planning to file a statement of interest containing the audacious argument that a sitting president could not be criminally investigated, a view the Supreme Court would later reject."

According to the book, Berman told his bosses that his office would not be acting as "Trump’s personal lawyer,” which led to a dressing down by DOJ's Jeffrey Rosen -- who reportedly told him "he expected the Southern District to follow orders and sign whatever he put in front of us” -- who eventually became acting attorney general before having his own falling out with Trump over the former president's bogus election fraud claims.

More to the point, Berman called Barr "a bully and his behavior 'thuggish.'”

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"Upon taking office, Barr tried to 'kill' the Southern District’s ongoing investigations relating to the campaign finance crimes to which [Trump attorney Michael ] Cohen had pleaded guilty," McQuade wrote. "The reference in plea documents to 'Individual-1' made it apparent that Trump faced potential criminal exposure in this investigation. In fact, Barr even discussed dismissing Cohen’s convictionin the same way he would later dismiss the false statements charges against former national security adviser Michael Flynn. In both cases, the defendants had pleaded guilty in open court."

Inserting her own commentary, McQuade wrote, "Berman’s book provides a cautionary tale about how political forces can undermine the quest for justice. He’s concerned that power has become centralized in Washington, providing an opportunity for politics to influence decisions. To protect the independence of the 94 U.S. attorney’s offices, he offers some suggestions for reform," before adding, "Fortunately, most U.S. attorneys know that their job is to exercise independent judgment and to refuse to take action based on politics. Berman reminds us that to do the job right, you must be willing to resign. Or in some cases, refuse to do so."

You can read more here.