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Sen. Mazie Hirono calls on Attorney General William Barr to resign at Senate hearing

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Video by Associated Press
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee grilled Attorney General Robert Barr over his handling of special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia report. Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono said Barr hasn't been honest with Congress and called on him to resign.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, questions Attorney General William Barr as he testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, today.

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Attorney General William Barr appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee to face lawmakers’ questions for the first time since releasing special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report on Capitol Hill today.

WASHINGTON >> U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono accused Attorney General William Barr of lying to Congress and called on him to resign Wednesday in a contentious exchange at a Senate hearing to review special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russia’s interference into the 2016 presidential election.

“Being the attorney general of the United States is a sacred trust. You have betrayed that trust. America deserves better. You should resign,” the Hawaii Democrat said at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

Hirono asked Barr if it was OK for a president to offer pardons to “people who don’t testify against him.”

When Barr hesitated and asked when did the president offer such a pardon, Hirono grew angry, saying, “Mr. attorney general, please give us some credit for knowing what the hell is going on.”

Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., cut Hirono off and shot back: “You have slandered this man from top to bottom.”

Barr chimed in, asking “How did we get to this point?”

Hirono began her statement by telling Barr that he joined a list of people, including Rudy Giuliani and Kellyanne Conway, “who sacrificed their once-decent reputations for the grifter and liar who sits in the Oval Office.”

She accused Barr of selectively quoting the Mueller report to “create the impression that the president was cleared of misconduct.”

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