Los Angeles, March 22: Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Friday wrapped up his two-year investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 US election, submitting his report to the Justice Department on a high-stakes probe of Donald Trump and his campaign dubbed a “witchhunt” by the president.
What the report says is confidential, but Attorney General Bill Barr wrote in a letter to Congress that he might be able to summarize its “principal conclusions” as early as this weekend.
There was no indication of whether Trump himself, members of his family or former campaign advisers have been implicated in collusion with Russia or obstruction of justice, two of the main focuses of the investigation that has kept a cloud over Trump’s administration since he took office.
Barr said he would consult with his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, and Mueller to determine what else from the report can be released to Congress and the public.
“I remain committed to as much transparency as possible, and I will keep you informed as to the status of my review,” Barr said.
The filing of Mueller’s report came after weeks of intense speculation over whether Mueller, a former FBI director who has remained invisible while the investigation plodded ahead, would produce any indictments or evidence that would support the impeachment of Trump.
A senior Justice Department official told US media Friday that after charging some 34 individuals, including six former Trump associates, Mueller’s team did not foresee recommending any further indictments.
Trump has repeatedly denied any collusion between his election campaign and Moscow, lashing out at the investigation as an “illegal witch hunt” run by a team of biased investigators.
The White House responded to Friday’s development by saying it welcomes the delivery of the long-awaited report.
“The next steps are up to Attorney General Barr and we look forward to the process taking its course,” Trump spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement.
“The White House has not received or been briefed on the Special Counsel’s report.”
Earlier Friday on Fox Business News Trump ridiculed Mueller as someone without a public mandate “to make a determination on my presidency.”
“People will not stand for it,” Trump said.
“For two years we’ve gone through this nonsense, because there’s no collusion with Russia.
“And there’s no obstruction. They’ll say, oh, well, wait. There was no collusion; that was a hoax. But he obstructed in fighting against the hoax. OK? Think about that one for a second.” (AFP)
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