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The Senate Judiciary Committee for the 116th Congress.
On Jan. 15 and 16, the Trump administration's nominee for Attorney General William Barr will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee for confirmation hearings.
- Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a staunch Trump ally and conservative firebrand, now leads the Committee.
- Some of Barr's controversial comments - combined with the high-stakes nature of the nomination, and hyperpartisan environment in Washington - could lead to some tense partisan clashes on the Committee.
- Here are the key Senators to watch during Barr's confirmation hearings.
On Jan. 15 and 16, the Trump administration's nominee for Attorney General William Barr will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee for confirmation hearings.
Barr, 68, previously served as attorney general in the early 1990s under President George H.W. Bush. Since then, he's worked as a corporate lawyer in private practice.
While Barr is widely-respected in the conservative legal world, some of his opinions have garnered controversy. Barr came under scrutiny for sending an unsolicited 20-page memo to the DOJ criticizing the Mueller probe's line of investigation into possible obstruction of justice and witness tampering by Trump.
Read more: Meet William Barr: What you need to know about the possible once and future attorney general
The memo called Mueller's inquiry into whether Trump obstructed justice by when he fired FBI director James Comey "legally unsupportable" and "potentially disastrous."
Barr also said Trump's firing of Comey was "the right call," supported Trump's firing of Deputy AG Sally Yates, and expressed concern that special counsel Robert Mueller's team of prosecutors is biased against Democrats. As attorney general, he would oversee the Mueller probe.
Barr's previous comments around the Mueller probe combined with the high-stakes nature of the nomination, and hyperpartisan environment in Washington could lead to some tense clashes.
Conservative firebrand and Trump-allied Sen. Lindsey Graham, who made headlines for his angry attack on his colleagues during the Kavanaugh hearings, now leads the Committee.
Here are the key Senators to watch during Barr's confirmation hearings: