The Democratic chairs of six House committees are demanding that the Justice Department release “without delay” the full report it has received from special counsel Robert Mueller. They say they expect Attorney General William Barr also to turn over all evidence Mueller has uncovered.
The Democrats say since the Justice Department asserts a sitting president can’t be indicted, Barr’s failure to release evidence of criminal or other misconduct by President Donald Trump “would raise serious questions about whether the Department of Justice policy is being used as a pretext for a cover-up of misconduct.”
The six chairs are Jerrold Nadler of Judiciary and Eliot Engel of Foreign Affairs; Elijah Cummings of Oversight and Reform; Adam Schiff of the Intelligence Committee, Maxine Waters of Financial Services and the Ways and Means Committee’s Richard Neal.
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6:40 p.m.
President Donald Trump’s lawyers want an early look at special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings before they are made public.
That’s according to Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s attorney. He says Trump’s legal team hasn’t received any assurances that they’ll get the early look they want, though.
Mueller notified Attorney General William Barr on Friday that he had concluded his probe of Russian election interference and any possible coordination with Donald Trump’s campaign.
Now, Barr will review the findings and determine how much to make public.
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6:38 p.m.
Special counsel Robert Mueller will be concluding his government service in the “coming days.”
That’s according to special counsel spokesman Peter Carr.
Carr says in a statement that a “small number” of the office’s staff will remain “to assist in closing the operations of the office.” He did not provide a specific timeline for when that might occur. As of Friday, 11 prosecutors were still employed by the special counsel’s office.
The statement comes just hours after Mueller turned in his confidential report closing his probe of Russian election interference and possible coordination with Donald Trump’s campaign.
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6:35 p.m.
House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff says his panel will issue subpoenas if special counsel Robert Mueller’s report — and its underlying evidence — are not released to Congress for further review.
The California Democrat said on CNN that Congress needs to know “and so does the country.”
He said he’s willing to subpoena Mueller as well as Attorney General William Barr, if needed, to push for disclosure.
House Democrats now see the Mueller investigation as a starting point for their own probes of President Donald Trump and Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Mueller delivered his final report to Barr on Friday.
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6:15 p.m.
One top Republican, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, says the findings of the special counsel’s Russia investigation must be made public to end the “speculation and innuendo” that hangs over President Donald Trump’s administration.
The former Judiciary Committee chairman says while it’s clear the Russians “tried to meddle in our democratic processes,” he still hasn’t seen any evidence of collusion.
Grassley says Attorney General William Barr Attorney General must provide the findings from special counsel Robert Mueller’s report to Congress and the American people “to finally put an end to the speculation and innuendo that has loomed over this administration since its earliest days.”
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5:58 p.m.
Special counsel Robert Mueller is not recommending any further indictments in the Russia investigation.
That’s according to a Justice Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person wasn’t authorized to speak publicly about the confidential recommendation.
Mueller notified Attorney General William Barr on Friday that he had concluded his probe of Russian election interference and any possible coordination with Donald Trump’s campaign.
—By Eric Tucker
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5:57 p.m.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham expects that he and the panel’s top Democrat, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, will be briefed “in the coming days” about special counsel Robert Mueller’s report.
The South Carolina Republican says he was notified by the Justice Department that Mueller’s report has been turned over and that Attorney General William Barr “will pursue as much transparency as possible.”
Graham says he expects to be “more thoroughly” briefed. He says he believed it was important for Mueller to do his job “without interference, and that has been accomplished.”
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5:55 p.m.
Attorney General William Barr says the Justice Department did not block special counsel Robert Mueller from taking any action during his Russia investigation.
Barr is required to disclose to Congress any instance in which he or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein decided an action Mueller proposed should not be pursued.
Barr said in his letter to members of Congress on Friday that “there were no such instances during the Special Counsel’s investigation.”
The attorney general notified four key lawmakers that he may update them over the weekend.
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5:50 p.m.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he welcomes news that special counsel Robert Mueller has completed his investigation into Russia’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 elections.
McConnell says he and other Republicans have long believed that Russia poses a significant threat to American interests, adding that he hopes Mueller’s report will “help inform and improve our efforts to protect our democracy.”
The Kentucky Republican says he hopes that Attorney General William Barr, who received Mueller’s report on Friday, will “provide as much information as possible” on the findings, “with as much openness and transparency as possible.”
Georgia Rep. Doug Collins, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said he expects the Justice Department to release the report to the committee without delay “and to the maximum extent permitted by law.”
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5:40 p.m.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Chuck Schumer say it’s “imperative” to make the full report from Special Counsel Robert Mueller public.
The top congressional Democrats say, “The American people have a right to the truth.”
In a joint statement, they say Attorney Gneral William Barr must not give President Donald Trump his lawyers or staff any “sneak preview” of the findings or evidence.
“The White House must not be allowed to interfere in decisions about what parts of those findings or evidence are made public,” they say.
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5:39 p.m.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee says Congress should receive the full report from special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.
New York Democrat Jerrold Nadler says in a statement that “We look forward to getting the full Mueller report and related materials.” He adds that “transparency and the public interest demand nothing less” because the public needs to have faith in the rule of law.
Attorney General William Barr wrote in a letter to Nadler and other committee chairmen that Mueller had finished his investigation and delivered his report to Barr. The attorney general said he would update Congress as soon as this weekend, but it wasn’t clear now much of the report would be shared with lawmakers or with the public.
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5:38 p.m.
Democratic presidential candidates are demanding that Attorney General William Barr make Robert Mueller’s report on Russia public.
Minutes after Barr notified members of Congress Friday that Mueller had delivered his report, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts tweeted that the attorney general should “release the Mueller report to the American public. Now.”
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey tweeted that the report “should be made public immediately.”
The Trump administration’s handling of Mueller’s report foretells big fights to come, from the presidential campaign trail to, in all likelihood, the federal courts.
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5:25 p.m.
President Donald Trump’s lawyers say they are “pleased” that special counsel Robert Mueller has delivered his report on the Russia investigation.
Rudy Giuliani and Jay Sekulow issued their joint statement within minutes of Attorney General William Barr’s letter to key members of Congress confirming the delivery and suggesting he could update lawmakers as soon as this weekend.
They say: “We’re pleased that the Office of Special Counsel has delivered its report to the Attorney General pursuant to the regulations. Attorney General Barr will determine the appropriate next steps.”
Mueller’s report, still confidential, sets the stage for big public fights to come, including in all likelihood, in federal court. It’s not clear how much of the report will become public or provided to Congress.
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5:20 p.m.
Responding to the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report, the White House says the next steps are “up to Attorney General (William) Barr.”
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders says “we look forward to the process taking its course.”
She adds, “The White House has not received or been briefed on the Special Counsel’s report.”
For 22 months, Mueller has probed allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election and other potential misdeeds by those in President Donald Trump’s orbit.
Barr has said he will provide updates on Mueller’s still-confidential findings to Congress as soon as this weekend.
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5:15 p.m.
Special counsel Robert Mueller’s report concluding the Russia investigation was delivered by a security officer early Friday afternoon to the office of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
That’s according to Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec. It was then delivered within minutes to Attorney General William Barr.
The White House was notified around 4:35-4:40 p.m. that the Justice Department had received the report.
The letter was scheduled to be delivered at 5 p.m. to staff members on Capitol Hill.
Rosenstein was expected to call Mueller on Friday to thank him for his work in the last two years.
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5:07 p.m.
Attorney General William Barr says he could update Congress as early as this weekend about special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings in the Russia investigation.
The Justice Department confirmed late Friday that Barr received Mueller’s final report. The report concludes Mueller’s nearly two-year-long investigation of Russian election interference and possible coordination with President Donald Trump’s campaign.
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5:03 p.m.
Special counsel Robert Mueller has concluded his investigation into Russian election interference and possible coordination with associates of President Donald Trump.
The Justice Department says Mueller delivered his final report Friday to Attorney General William Barr, who is reviewing it.
Mueller’s report, still confidential, sets the stage for big public fights to come. The next steps are up to Trump’s attorney general, to Congress and, in all likelihood, federal courts.
It’s not clear how much of the report will become public or provided to Congress. Barr has said he will write his own report summarizing Mueller’s findings.
The nearly two-year probe has shadowed Trump’s presidency and resulted in felony charges against 34 people including six people who served on Trump’s campaign
