Democrats in the House prepare for the Barr showdown

A key House committee, authorized to remove President Donald Trump, will hold a hearing Thursday to question Attorney General William Barr about the Mueller report, even though the Attorney General is not showing anything.

The standoff took its last turn on Monday when the Judiciary Committee officially announced its plans to hold a vote on Wednesday morning that would allow the advocates of the special group Democrats and those of the People's Government to split an additional hour of questions on the conclusions of the special council on the interference of Russia in the 2016 presidential election.

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Justice officials opposed committee staff asking Barr's public questions about the Mueller report, paving the way for an explosive hearing on Thursday. Democrats say that if the Attorney General does not appear, they will conclude by issuing a subpoena from his testimony.

"The witness is not going to tell the committee how to conduct his hearing, point to the line," Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), President of the judiciary, told CNN on Sunday.

DOJ spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said Barr was the one who volunteered to testify in front of Congress about the Mueller report. "Therefore, it is the members of Congress who should ask the questions," she said. "He remains happy to discuss with members their questions regarding the Mueller report."

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, press secretary at the White House, told reporters: "We are reviewing all this." She insisted that the administration wanted "to be as cooperative as possible".

"But at the same time," added Sanders, "you have to look at the outrageous behavior especially of the House Democrats who ask for things that they know they can not have, that they know that they have no legal authority to have and frankly, they just act like children. "

Thursday's hearing in the House is one of two scheduled appearances for Barr this week on Capitol Hill.

The Senate Judiciary Committee led by the GOP Wednesday morning has the first opportunity to question the Attorney General, a session that will feature his own play with three Democrats vying for the White House – Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris – posted the panel.

The hopes of 2020 will share the stage with President Lindsey Graham (RS.C.), a declared Trump ally, who sparked criticism on Sunday, saying he did not care if the president asked for it. White House lawyer, Don McGahn, to dismiss Mueller during the early stages of the investigation in Russia – one of twelve cases of potential impediment to justice involving the president as the special council examined.

Sanders praised the Senate hearing as "the way the process should work" – an open hearing with questions from legislators.

Mueller's redacted findings released earlier this month include ample evidence about the president's efforts to thwart or put an end to the Mueller investigation, even though the special advocate also concluded the case. 39; absence of finding a criminal plot between the Trump campaign and the Russian government to influence the 2016 election.

Until now, Democratic leaders have put a halt to the use of the Mueller report as a basis for the official launch of the impeachment procedure, although they continue to demand more evidence and information. 39, information from the investigators of the special council.

A subpoena from the Judiciary Committee already addressed to the DOJ requests access to the unedited Mueller report, as well as the testimony and the underlying evidence of the grand jury.

On Monday, Trump also added to partisan tension by congratulating Barr for his treatment of the Mueller probe. "Bob Mueller was a great hero for radical left-wing democrats," the president said on Twitter. "Now that the Mueller report is over, with the conclusion NO COLLUSION & NO OBSTRUCTION (based on a review of the report by our highly respected AG), the Dems circulate saying:" Bob, sorry, does not know the man . "