Bill Barr faces increasing pressure to recuse himself from Ukraine investigation: ‘He’s the lawyer for the president'

On Tuesday, CNN reported that Democrats are redoubling the public pressure on Attorney General William Barr to recuse himself from all matters relating to the Ukraine scandal.

"He's the attorney general, supposedly of our country, but it becomes clearer every day he's the lawyer for the President," said Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) on Tuesday morning. She has previously called on Barr to resign altogether.

Meanwhile, the ten Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have sent Barr a letter demanding he hand off oversight of the Ukraine investigation, saying that, "Impartial enforcement of the law is essential to give the American public confidence in the Justice Department's work. Your personal connection to these matters creates the appearance of a conflict of interest and gives rise to questions about whether the Department is being used to advance the President's personal interests."

At issue is the fact that President Donald Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to work with Barr, as well as his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, while apparently withholding military aid to pressure him into investigating former Vice President Joe Biden.

Barr has so far shown no indication he intends to recuse himself, and has also denied all allegations of abusing the DOJ for political purposes, saying "I act on behalf of the United States." He has also defended his decision to open a criminal investigation into FBI and intelligence officials who probed the Trump campaign's ties to Russia, saying that U.S. Attorney John Durham is taking the lead on it with no input from him.