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Trump-Russia investigation
Mueller report: Trump and America wait for Barr to disclose findings
President in Florida as wait for news enters second day
What does the Mueller report mean for Trump?
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Martin Pengelly and agencies
@MartinPengelly
Sun 24 Mar 2019 12.08 GMT
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Donald Trump and his attorney general, William Barr.
America woke on Sunday to a second day of waiting to find out what is in the Mueller report – and to more uncharacteristic circumspection from the president.
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Donald Trump was in Florida, at his Mar-a-Lago resort, his Twitter account dormant for more than a day until brief tweets on Sunday morning wished his followers “a great day” and declaimed: “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
On Friday night Trump briefly addressed a Republican gathering but he did not mention Mueller or his work, until now the subject of countless tweets, complaints and defiant statements.
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On Saturday the White House merely repeated the statement it issued on Friday when Robert Mueller delivered his report – that it had not been briefed.
The president played golf. The deputy White House press secretary told reporters Trump was “good” but would not say who the president played with or what was discussed on the course.
But as Trump knows well, in the age of social media it is hard to keep things quiet. The rock-rap musician Kid Rock tweeted a picture with the president and wrote: “Another great day on the links! … What a great man, so down to earth and so fun to be with!!”
Trump wore a red cap with “USA” emblazoned on the front. Kid Rock wore stars-and-stripes trousers.
Kid Rock (@KidRock)
Another great day on the links! Thank you to POTUS for having me and to EVERYONE at Trump International for being so wonderful. What a great man, so down to earth and so fun to be with!! KEEP AMERICA GREAT!! -Kid Rock pic.twitter.com/cSsswI5PbW
March 23, 2019
Meanwhile, in Washington, attorney general William Barr scoured the special counsel’s report on the Russia investigation, deciding how much Congress and the public will get to know about the two-year investigation of Trump and Moscow’s work to help him reach the White House.
Barr was set to release his first summary on Sunday, people familiar with the process said. That seemed certain to set off a fight with Democrats, who want access to all of Mueller’s findings – and supporting evidence – on whether Trump’s 2016 campaign coordinated with Russia and whether the president sought to obstruct the investigation.
Trump’s firing of James Comey in May 2017, an act he later told NBC was prompted by “this Russia thing” is one focus of such interest.
On Saturday Barr and deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein – who appointed Mueller and oversaw much of his work and has repeatedly found himself the focus of controversy – worked to produce a summary of main conclusions.
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Rosenstein wrote the memo with which Trump justified firing Comey because of his handling of investigations into Hillary Clinton, Trump’s rival in 2016. Fired FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe has alleged Rosenstein said the president ordered him to do so.
Mueller delivered his report on Friday. There would be no further indictments, officials said, but Mueller has illuminated Russia’s assault on the US political system, painted the Trump campaign as eager to exploit hacked Democratic emails to hurt Clinton, and exposed lies aimed at covering up Russia-related contacts.
Barr must weigh protocol of not releasing negative information about people who are not indicted against extraordinary public interest.
Democrats are citing recent precedent of norm-breaking disclosures, including during the Clinton email investigation, to argue they are entitled to the entire report and evidence. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Barr’s offer to provide a summary of principal conclusions was “insufficient” and told Democrats she would reject any classified briefing.
Trump also faces a justice department investigation in New York into hush money payments to two women who say they had sex with him years before the election. He has been implicated in a potential campaign finance violation by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who says Trump asked him to arrange the transactions.
Federal prosecutors, also in New York, have been investigating foreign contributions to the president’s inaugural committee.
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Trump was never interviewed in person by Mueller’s team but submitted answers in writing. Justice department legal opinions hold that sitting presidents may not be indicted. Democrats say Trump should not be immune.
Associates and family members have been dogged. They include Donald Trump Jr, who had a role in arranging a Trump Tower meeting with a Kremlin-linked lawyer, and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who was interviewed at least twice.
Mueller charged 34 people, including campaign chair Paul Manafort and national security adviser Michael Flynn. Three Russian companies were indicted, as were 25 Russians on charges related to election interference. Five Trump aides pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate and a sixth, Roger Stone, is awaiting trial on charges he lied to Congress and engaged in witness tampering.
Peter Carr, spokesman for the special counsel, said on Saturday the case of former Trump aide Rick Gates will be handed off to the US attorney for the District of Columbia. Gates was a key cooperator and court papers show he continues to help with several federal investigations.
As the Mueller investigation unfolds …
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Trump-Russia investigation
Trump administration
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