Former Attorney General Bill Barr is warning that a second Donald Trump term as president will be even more chaotic than the first as he would be more willing to abuse power unencumbered by reelection pressures, and there would be no one to stop him.
“Trump needs people around him who will push back and help keep him on the straight and narrow. During his first term, the main way that could be done is by pointing out to him how this would hurt his prospects for a second term,” Barr told Fox News host Neil Cavuto. “Once he wins a second term, I don’t know what considerations can be used to push back against bad ideas.
Barr, who served as Trump’s attorney general from 2019 to 2020, said the former president would have no problem filing his cabinet, but it is the type of people he fills it with that raises concerns.
His advice for a potential Trump attorney general is to “be ready to say no and to resign.”
“Trump has made it plain that he’s going to respond to what he considers the left wings’ ‘no holds barred’ approach by fighting fire with fire,” Barr said. “I think for people going into that administration. I think they have to be ready to oppose the abuse of government power.”
Trump has signalled that he plans to become a full-fledged autocrat if elected to a second term, using the powers of the government to exact revenge on his political enemies. Yet he continues to lead the rest of the GOP primary field and has a slight lead over President Joe Biden in the general election.
Barr told Cavuto that he doesn’t support Trump in the GOP primary because he is not the candidate best suited to “move the country forward.”
“I’m worried that his style of governance, his continuing to pander to anger and frustration versus a constructive approach to solving our problems, is going to be chaotic and not accomplish very much,” he added. “He’ll be a lame duck president.”
As for who he will support in a Biden vs Trump rematch, Barr said he will “jump off that bridge when we get to it.”
