Yes the AG can’t sit by himself in DOJ dining room at lunch.
I’ve actually worked for unpopular managers who didn’t give a rat’s ass what others thought of him. All that mattered was pushing their vision and related agenda. They were not loved, but they were effective because they believed RESULTS were what mattered. That’s what they were hired to do. Trump is kind of like that in many respects. Barr is not; he’s simply a bureaucrat as are most people in DC.
Washington is full of yes men and sycophants. Good executives and managers don’t want to work there for good reasons.
(BTW I got along with most of my managers pretty well since I am a production oriented person who has little patience for political games and excuses. Basically I believe you’re there to do a job, not make friends.)