S. HRG. 102-505, Pt. 2 CONFIRMATION HEARINGS ON FEDERAL APPOINTMENTS-WILLIAM P. BARR HEARINGS BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED SECt .D CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON CONFIRMATION HEARINGS ON APPOINTMENTS TO THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY NOVEMBER 12 AND 13, 1991 Part 2 Serial No. J-102-7 Prin ed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary S5.-2 - 33 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 53-053 WASHINGTON : 1992 COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Delaware, Chairman EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts STROM THURMOND, South Carolina HOWARD M. METZENBAUM, Ohio ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah DENNIS DzCONCINI, Arizona ALAN K. SIMPSON, Wyoming PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa HOWELL HEFLIN, Alabama ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania PAUL SIMON, Illinois HANK BROWN, Colorado HERBERT KOHL, Wisconsin RONALD A. KLAw, Chief Counsel Jznuzy J. PECK, Staff Director Tanmy L. WoonN, Minority Chief Counsel and Staff Director CONTENTS Hearings held on: Page Tuesday, November 12, 1991 .................................................................................. 1 Wednesday, November 13,1991 ............................................................................. 55 STATEMENTS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS Biden, H on. Joseph R ., Jr .............................................................................................. 1 T hurm ond, H on. Strom .................................................................................................. 3 Kennedy, Hon. Edward M .............................................................................................. 5 Hatch, Hon. Orrin G.................................. ...... ...... .... 5 DeC oncini, H on. Dennis .................................................................................................. 7 G rassley, H on. Charles E ............................................................................................... 8 Leahy, H on. Patrick J .................................................................................................... 9 Sim pson, H on. A lan K .................................................................................................... 12 S im on , H on . P aul ............................................................................................................. 13 B rown , H on. Hank ........................................................................................................... 13 Kohl, H on. H erbert ......................................................................................................... 14 H efl in, H on. H ow ell ........................................................................................................ 73 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF WITNESSES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1991 Barr, Hon. William P., to be Attorney General of the United States ................... 15 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1991 Barr, Hon. William P., to be Attorney General of the United States ................... 55 ALPHABETICAL LIST AND SUBMITTED MATERIAL Barr, Hon. William P.: Testim on y .................................................................................................................. 15, 55 Simon, Senator Paul: New York Times editorial, entitled "A High-Tech Watergate," dated Oct. 2 1, 19 9 1 ................................................................................................................... 8 4 APPENDIX B iographical questionnaire ............................................................................................ 153 Responses to written questions ....................................................................... 173, 184, 222 CONFIRMATION HEARING ON THE NOMINATION OF WILLIAM P. BARR TO BE ATTORNEY GEN- ERAL OF THE UNITED STATES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1991 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:18 p.m., in room SD- 226, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (chairman of the committee), presiding. Present: Senators Biden, Kennedy, Metzenbaum, DeConcini, Leahy, Heflin, Simon, Kohl, Thurmond, Hatch, Simpson, Grassley, Specter, and Brown. OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN BIDEN The CHAIRMAN. Before we begin the hearing, I want the record to show that last night I attended a basketball game, the Milwau- kee Bucks versus the Philadelphia 76er's, as a consequence of the kind generosity of the Senator from Wisccnsin, who has a mild in- terest in the Milwaukee Bucks. And I must say I was publicly em- barrassed because as he was listening to the game heading home, apparently the announcer said, "And there's Senator Biden rooting for the 76er's." He has just presented me with a pen, the Milwau- kee Bucks. I will try to do better next time, Senator, but thank you nonetheless for accommodating my ability to see the game. Senator DECONCINI. An endorsement? The CHAIRMAN. Well, yes, it is an endorsement of Wisconsin. Senator LEAHY. Of Senator Kohl. The CHAIRMAN. At any rate, it is always easy to endorse Senator Kohl. Well, welcome, General. It is a pleasure to have you here. It is a delight to have you before the committee, and I am sure you are delighted that we have finally reached the point that we are here. You know this committee well, and I have enjoyed our work to- gether in your previous incarnation. I look forward to us being able to continue to work together. You know the process. I have an opening statement. I will invite my colleagues, if they have brief opening statements, to make theirs, and then we will invite you both to introduce your family and make an opening statement and then we have some questions, if we may. _ I _ II . 2 Today the Judiciary Committee opens its hearings on the nomi- nation of William Barr to be Attorney General of the United States. The Office of Attorney General is unique among the President's Cabinet. The Attorney General is a member of the President's ad- ministration, but his allegiance is not to the President alone. As the Nation's most senior lawyer, the Attorney General's oath of office-to defend the Constitution and to faithfully execute the laws of the land-takes on a special meaning. His commitment to that oath may not be compromised, even in the name of serving the President of the United States. To put it another way, the Attorney General is not the Presi- dent's personal lawyer. That role is served by the White House counsel. The Attorney General is more properly considered the peo- ple's lawyer. His allegiance must be to the public; he must protect and enforce the rights of all Americans. Of course, the Attorney General serves the President in many ways, and among others, he advises the President on the constitu- tionality or legality of proposed actions or policies; he assists the administration in determining what positions the Government will present in Federal courts; and he directs the Department of Justice in serving the legitimate goals of the administration in all law en- forcement matters. But he must also be prepared to tell the President, in my view, that a proposed course of action would violate the Constitution or the laws of the United States, even when that advice is not what the President wishes to hear. In short, while working to serve the President, the Attorney Gen- eral has the unique responsibilit to the public that requires him to maintain independence from the President's personal and politi- cal interests. Fulfilling one's duty to the President without surrendering the necessary independence presents a dilemma for every Attorney General, and it has presented a dilemma for every Attorney Gener- al in the past. Understanding that these competing responsibilities must be carefully balanced is one of the most important attributes an Attorney General, in my view, can bring to this job. It is my opinion that, in recent years, the Attorney General and other senior officials within the Department of Justice have not always found the proper balance between these two competing in- terests. There has been a tendency, in my view, to blur the distinction between the role of Attorney General and the Justice Department on the one hand, and the White House counsel on the other. The country, in my view, is best served when these roles are clearly delineated and purposely separated. The rule of law is best preserved in this Nation when our Attorney General is dedicated to the law first, and the President's political agenda second. As a result, in these hearings, much of my focus will be on how Mr. Barr views the proper relationship between the Attorney Gen- eral and the President. This issue is of particular concern to me because, during his years in Government service, Mr. Barr has gained the reputation as a staunch defender of broad executive power. As I indicated to you earlier, General, I am going to want to talk to you about that. And I say that, by the way, not in any way sug- gesting you have compromised anything; just your philosophic view of the role of the Executive and the Congress. Because if your repu- tation as being such a staunch defender of broad executive power is deserved-and that is a matter to be determined in these hear- ings-Mr. Barr may be sympathetic to efforts of the current admin- istration to enlarge and consolidate the power of the Executive, with an accompanying disdain for the legitimate role of Congress as a coequal branch of the Government. Because the Attorney General's preeminent responsibility is to uphold the Constitution and enforce the law, he must adhere to the Constitution's division of responsibility