众议员特德·卢指责威廉·巴尔宣布对罗伯特·穆勒俄罗斯调查的起因进行刑事调查，与其说他是作为司法部长，不如说是为了唐纳德·特朗普总统的利益。
和...说话有线电视新闻网的唐·莱蒙利乌称，当被问及巴尔对该消息的回应时，他的行为“令人深感不安”纽约时报司法部正在调查2016年选举期间俄罗斯的干涉。
正如所指出的泰晤士报负责调查的检察官约翰·达勒姆(John H. Durham)将能够传唤证人证词和文件，并召集大陪审团，提出刑事指控。然而，不清楚达勒姆正在调查什么潜在的刑事指控，也不清楚调查何时开始。
“特别顾问穆勒起诉了34个个人和公司，至少有8个被定罪或认罪。他发现俄罗斯系统而全面地干涉了我们的美国选举。比尔·巴尔现在试图做的是告诉美国人民，这些都不应该发生，”Lieu said."比尔·巴尔正在做的事情令人深感不安。"
巴尔以前受到过批评他总结了穆勒的调查，他说调查的结论是特朗普竞选团队及其任何同伙都没有与俄罗斯合谋影响2016年的选举。米勒在5月份给司法部写了一封信，表达了他对巴尔的四页总结没有完全抓住“背景、性质和实质”他的发现。
利欧补充说，当莱蒙提出要求时，巴尔“绝对”是作为总统的律师而不是司法部长的党派人士。
“在特别委员会的报告发布之前，他的备忘录令人难以置信地误导，”刘补充道。“当历史回顾它时，你会知道他误导了美国人民。然后在巴尔采取的不同行动中，他似乎是作为总统自己的律师，而不是作为美国司法部长。”
司法部的指导方针指出，当局启动调查只需要有“合理的迹象”表明犯罪已经发生，这一要求低于获得搜查令所需的可能原因。
“然而，该标准确实需要具体的事实或情况来表明过去、现在或即将发生的违规行为，”该标准指南添加。“发起调查必须有客观、事实的依据；光凭直觉是不够的。”
特朗普在整个诉讼过程中不断指责米勒的调查，宣称这是一场“政治迫害”，尽管有许多人因此被定罪，包括他的前竞选主席保罗·马纳福特。
特朗普也声称穆勒长达448页的报告穆勒本人已经完全免除了他所有与俄罗斯干涉有关的不法行为作证说没有。
2016年7月28日，美国众议员特德·利欧在宾夕法尼亚州费城富国中心举行的民主党全国代表大会第四天发表讲话。利乌说，威廉·巴尔发起穆勒对俄罗斯的调查“令人深感不安”。
CRIMINAL INQUIRY INTO MUELLER'S RUSSIA PROBE IS 'DEEPLY TROUBLING,' SAYS DEMOCRATIC REP. TED LIEU
Rep. Ted Lieu has accused William Barr of acting more in the interests of President Donald Trump than as Attorney General by announcing a criminal investigation into the origins of Robert Mueller's Russia probe.
Speaking to CNN's Don Lemon, Lieu said it is "deeply troubling" how Barr is behaving when asked for his response to the news, first reported by The New York Times, that the Justice Department is looking into the investigation on Russian interference during the 2016 election.
As noted by The Times, John H. Durham, the prosecutor heading the investigation, will be able to subpoena for witness testimonies and documents, as well as convene a grand jury and file criminal charges. However, it is not clear what potential criminal charges Durham is looking into, nor when the investigation was launched.
"Special counselor Mueller indicted 34 individuals and companies, at least eight have been convicted or pled guilty. He found that Russia systematically and sweepingly interfered in our U.S. elections. What Bill Barr is now trying to do is essentially tell the American people none of that should have happened," Lieu said. "It is deeply troubling what Bill Barr is doing."
Barr was previously criticized for his summary of Mueller's investigation, which he said concludes that neither the Trump campaign nor any of its associates conspired with Russia to influence the 2016 election. Mueller wrote a letter to the Justice Department in May expressing his concerns that Barr's four-page summary did not fully capture the "context, nature, and substance" of his findings.
Lieu added that Barr is "absolutely" acting as a partisan as the attorney for the president rather than attorney general when asked by Lemon.
"His memo, before the special council's report was released, is incredibly misleading," Lieu added. "When history looks back on it, you'll know that he misled the American people. And then in different actions Barr has taken he seems like he's acting as the President's own lawyer rather than as Attorney general for the United States."
The Justice Department's guidelines state that there only needs to be "reasonable indication" that a crime has been committed for authorities to launch an investigation, a lower requirement than the probable cause needed to obtain search warrants.
"However, the standard does require specific facts or circumstances indicating a past, current, or impending violation," the guidelines add. "There must be an objective, factual basis for initiating the investigation; a mere hunch is insufficient."
Trump constantly berated the Mueller investigation throughout proceedings, declaring it a "witch hunt" despite the number of convictions which stemmed from it, including his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Trump has also claimed Mueller's 448-page report had completely exonerated him of all wrongdoing regarding Russian interference, which Mueller himself has testified it does not.
US Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) delivers remarks on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 28, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lieu said it is "deeply troubling" that William Barr's has launched an investigation Mueller's Russia probe.
