The Founding Fathers deliberately set the treason bar very high. The reason they did that was from their expertise and knowledge of European history where the sovereign could and did declare any opposition treason. The Burr trial set it higher still. Please consider the following list of treason convictions against the United States.
1 Philip Vigol and John Mitchell, convicted of treason and sentenced to hanging; pardoned by George Washington; see Whiskey Rebellion.
2. Governor Thomas Dorr 1844, convicted of treason against the state of Rhode Island; see Dorr Rebellion; released in 1845; civil rights restored in 1851; verdict annulled in 1854.
3. John Brown, convicted of treason against the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1859 and executed for attempting to organize armed resistance to slavery.
4. Aaron Dwight Stevens, took part in John Brown’s raid and was executed in 1860 for treason against Virginia.
5. William Bruce Mumford, convicted of treason and hanged in 1862 for tearing down a United States flag during the American Civil War. An abuse of the charge and tragically the only one ever executed for treason!
6. Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold, and George Atzerodt, all hanged on July 7, 1865 for treason and conspiracy for the Lincoln assassination and conspiracy - by military tribunal.
7. Iva Toguri D’Aquino, who is frequently identified with “Tokyo Rose” convicted 1949. Subsequently pardoned by President Gerald Ford.
8. Herbert Hans Haupt, German-born naturalized U.S. citizen, was convicted of treason in 1942 and executed after being named as a German spy by fellow German spies defecting to the United States.
9. Martin James Monti, United States Army Air Force pilot, convicted of treason for defecting to the Waffen SS in 1944.
10.Robert Henry Best, convicted of treason on April 16, 1948 and served a life sentence.
11. Mildred Gillars, also known as “Axis Sally”, convicted of treason on March 8, 1949; served 12 years of a 10- to 30-year prison sentence.
12. Tomoya Kawakita, sentenced to death for treason in 1952, but eventually released by President John F. Kennedy to be deported to Japan.
13. Adam Yahiye Gadahn has been indicted for treason as of 2012,but has not been brought to trial as he remains at large. Not going to happen he’s dead!
Between the world wars there were the Blair Mountain treason trials. Most acquitted (one disappeared!) but still a serious abuse!
As you can see very few served complete sentences, it’s clear we are a very forgiving nation.
A notable absentee is Taliban Johnny - John Michael Lindh. He was convicted of murdering a USACIT abroad - one Micheal Spann a young CIA officer during the Afghan prison break. To me it was clear he committed treason - in arms against the US. However, that was not what he was charged with! (Who understands the mental machinations of lawyers? I sure don’t!)
Nothing above except perhaps the emotion driven abuses fit your criteria for charging Barr and others we have political disagreements with, with treason. Nothing!
If you make the charge of treason easy, it will soon be used against you!
I forgot to mention that FedGov didn’t charge the Confederate leadership with treason. It wanted to but thought better of it for obvious reasons. It did hold Jefferson Davis without trial for two years. Another federal for all intents and purposes federal treason abuse