US: William Barr sworn in as AG

William Barr was sworn in as the 85th attorney general of the United States on Thursday, immediately assuming leadership of a Justice Department in the midst of multiple criminal investigations that have shadowed President Donald Trump’s administration and ensnared a half-dozen former Trump aides.

Barr took the oath at a closed White House ceremony with his family after the Senate voted to confirm him on a largely party-line vote of 54-45, allowing him to become only the second person in history to serve twice as the attorney general. His confirmation came despite concerns from some Democrats about how Barr planned to oversee special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders called the confirmation “a major victory for justice and the rule of law.”

Barr steps into a difficult job as the country’s top law enforcement officer, three months after Trump ousted his first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, who endured more than a year of criticism for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, which the president has repeatedly derided as a “witch hunt.” Trump complained to the newspaper The Hill in September that “I have no attorney general.”