Former Attorney General Bill Barr said Friday on CNN’s “The Lead” that he would oppose former President Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican primary.
Tapper said, “You definitely write that something changed after the election. He went off the rails. You write that you were disgusted by things he said or did. You said he took a dangerous turn after the election, significantly detached from reality. His constant bellicosity diminishes him in the office. In the spring of 2020, you said he was acting like a hyperactive maniac. You say he doesn’t have the temperament to lead the country going forward.”
Barr said, “He’s not my idea of a president, and I felt he would lose the election because he was not controlling himself. He was allowing his pettiness to come through. I feel it is one of his great failings. I think a lot of people agree with his policies. They like his strength and directness, but to the extent they support him, it is despite this obnoxious behavior. It is not because of it.”
Tapper said, “Your book ends with the conclusion that the party and the country would be better suited if a different candidate led the way going forward. You say there’s an impressive array of younger candidates. If Trump runs, and others challenge him, which might happen, you never know, would you get involved in the primary fight to defeat him to support one of those other candidates?”
Barr said, “Absolutely, yes. I think the coming presidential election would be a good opportunity for the Republican Party. From my standpoint, the progressive left is sort of showing sort of a totalitarian temperament, and I think the Republicans can win a decisive majority. But I don’t think we can do it with Trump. He’s just too divisive a candidate.”
