Bob Barr told a well known conspiracy theorist that if he returns to Congress, he will fight to impeach President Barack Obama.
Barr, of Smyrna, is competing in a heated Republican primary to replace U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey, who is running for the U.S. Senate. He gave an interview to conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' "Infowars," an Internet radio show and website that fights things like fluoride in drinking water and claims the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks were an inside job.
Barr was best known in his four terms in Congress for leading the impeachment of President Bill Clinton. Jones, while interviewing Barr, alleged Clinton murdered his enemies, though he offered no proof.
“And it does take backbone to try to impeach somebody when you’re going up against gangsters like this. And we have to get rid of the Clinton mafia,” Jones said.
He then asked Barr, who served as one of the House managers of Clinton’s impeachment, if he would seek an indictment against Obama.
“I think it really has come to that,” Barr said. “It’s not something I like to say. When I left the House before — after we impeached Clinton — you know, my hope was we would never have to go through that process again. But we do.
“Mr. President, you are not above the law. You cannot ignore the law. You cannot simply violate the law, violate the Constitution because from a policy standpoint you deem it appropriate to do so. We don’t operate that way in America, and you are not going to be permitted any longer to do that.”
Barr did not say which laws he thinks Obama has violated.
Barr's opponents in the Republican congressional primary took aim at him for associating with Jones. They also pointed to a recent news report that revealed Barr endorsed Eric Holder for attorney general in 2009, though Holder is far from Jones on the ideological spectrum.
Last year, Barr called for Holder’s resignation.
“Bob Barr certainly keeps interesting company,” said Tom Krause, campaign manager for state Rep. Ed Lindsey, of Buckhead. “He hangs with a notorious conspiracy theorist who claims 9/11 was an inside job just days after a report surfaces on his glowing endorsement of Eric Holder for Attorney General.”
Dan McLagan, a strategist for former state Sen. Barry Loudermilk, of Cassville, also linked Barr to Holder.
“Barack Obama is arguably the worst president in American history,” McLagan said in an email, “but Bob Barr pushed his pick of Eric Holder as the Attorney General, who has carried out the most egregious policies of the administration. This may be a debate Bob has to have with himself.”
Barr’s campaign manager and son, Derek Barr, called Krause and McLagan’s comments “political blather that comes from those candidates desperate for attention because they are far behind in the polls.”
“Bob did endorse Eric Holder because he thought he was personally honest,” Derek Barr said in an email. “In turn, he was one of the first political figures in the country to call for his resignation when it became evident that Mr. Holder was grossly mismanaging the Justice Department.”
Derek Barr added that his father does not agree with Jones that Clinton murdered his enemies and that the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks were an inside job.
“Bob’s done interviews in a number of forums and doesn’t necessarily agree with all of his questioners’ opinions,” he said, “whether it’s Alex Jones or MSNBC.”
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