President Trump today said special counsel Robert Mueller should not testify on the findings of his probe into Russian election interference, in contrast to his statements two days ago that he didn’t have a problem with it.
Trump said Mueller had found no collusion in a pair of tweets, and questioned why Democrats wanted him to testify before Congress:
After spending more than $35,000,000 over a two year period, interviewing 500 people, using 18 Trump Hating Angry Democrats & 49 FBI Agents – all culminating in a more than 400 page Report showing NO COLLUSION – why would the Democrats in Congress now need Robert Mueller…….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 5, 2019
….to testify. Are they looking for a redo because they hated seeing the strong NO COLLUSION conclusion? There was no crime, except on the other side (incredibly not covered in the Report), and NO OBSTRUCTION. Bob Mueller should not testify. No redos for the Dems!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 5, 2019
The special counsel found that Russia did interfere with the election, but not the Trump campaign.
As far as obstruction, the Mueller report laid out facts on both sides but did not exonerate Trump.
Mueller and his team filed charges against 37 defendants, secured seven guilty pleas and one conviction at trial.
Six former associates and advisors of President Trump were among those charged.
The case of Trump’s former deputy campaign chairman Rick Gates was transferred last month from the special counsel’s office to federal prosecutors in Washington.
Anticipation has been growing for Mueller to testify before Congress after it was revealed he expressed frustration with the way Attorney General William Barr presented his investigation’s findings to the public.
Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) today said the House Judiciary Committee is aiming to bring in special counsel Robert Mueller on May 15, but “nothing has been agreed to yet.”
Cicilline, who is a member of the committee, during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” earlier in the day said a representative for Mueller had agreed to the May 15 date, but walked back his remarks later.
“Just to clarify: we are aiming to bring Mueller in on the 15th, but nothing has been agreed to yet,” Cicilline wrote on Twitter. “That’s the date the Committee has proposed, and we hope the Special Counsel will agree to it. Sorry for the confusion.”
Trump on Friday said he wouldn’t prevent Mueller from testifying before Congress, telling reporters he would leave that decision up to Attorney General William Barr.
Barr said this week that he wouldn’t prevent Mueller from testifying.
Trump was asked whether he would “like to see Mueller testify.”
“That’s up to our attorney general, who I think has done a fantastic job,” the president replied.
Barr, however, said during his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that he wouldn’t object to Mueller appearing.
“I’ve already said publicly I had no objection,” Barr said.
Democrats have been calling for Mueller to testify before the committee after they obtained a letter from the special counsel expressing frustration with Barr’s summary of Mueller’s Russia investigation.
“”The summary letter the Department sent to Congress and released to the public late in the afternoon of March 24 did not fully capture the context, nature, and substance of this Office’s work and conclusions,” the letter signed by Mueller reads. “There is now public confusion about critical aspects of the results of our investigation.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has also invited Mueller to testify about his phone call with Barr in which the two discussed Barr’s four-page memo outlining the conclusions of Mueller’s Russia probe.
Barr, during a press conference last month, said he would not object to Mueller speaking with Congress.