Democrats are preparing to fight for special counsel Robert Mueller’s full report on Russia’s alleged ties to President Trump — by subpoena, if necessary — if Attorney General William Barr opts to keep it secret.
The Democratic leaders of six House committees late Friday pressed Barr to ensure the Mueller report is released. In a letter to Barr, they said it should be released “without delay and to the maximum extent permitted by law.”
If Mueller’s report is redacted, they demanded to be given the raw information so they can “judge the appropriateness of any redactions for ourselves.”
They also warned that if Mueller has found criminal actions by Trump, the department shouldn’t be able to hide behind its policy of not indicting a sitting president.
“To maintain that a sitting president cannot be indicted, and then to withhold evidence of wrongdoing from Congress because the President will not be charged, is to convert Department policy into the means for a cover-up,” they wrote. “The President is not above the law.”
Here’s our simple message to Attorney General Barr:
When Special Counsel Robert Mueller completes the investigation, make his report public. And turn the evidence over to Congress. Without delay and to the maximum extent permitted by law.
Our letter: pic.twitter.com/f00LVn88N1
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) February 22, 2019
But barring the release of Mueller’s report, Democrats are already thinking of alternatives. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said earlier this week that if Barr only releases a limited version of Mueller’s findings, then “there will be subpoenas from Congress, including, I hope, from the Senate Judiciary Committee, where I sit.”
Blumenthal said he was frustrated by Barr’s hesitancy over releasing Mueller’s full report: “I asked William Barr if he would allow Robert Mueller to testify, and he was noncommittal. I asked William Barr if he would object to a subpoena for the Mueller report, and he was noncommittal.”
AG William Barr “has to make a decision — is he going to be the people’s lawyer or is he going to be the President’s lawyer?” @SenBlumenthal says as sources tell CNN that the Justice Department is preparing for Mueller report as early as next week. https://t.co/o1rWjoIe29 pic.twitter.com/ZR9AXMOTqa
— New Day (@NewDay) February 21, 2019
If Barr doesn’t release Mueller’s full report, Blumenthal said, “I think there will be subpoenas. But there will also be a public perception of a cover-up … Here’s the really important point: the American public … believe they have a right to know.”
Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., the House Judiciary Committee’s chairman, said last month when asked if he might subpoena the report or subpoena Mueller: “One or both. We would subpoena the report. And we could invite Mueller to testify.”
“We will get that information to the American people.”
Chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee, Democrat @RepJerryNadler, says he’ll use his subpoena power to get and release the Mueller Report and/or invite Robert Mueller to testify if it is not released in full. pic.twitter.com/mcB6NBmSVw
— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) January 17, 2019
Federal law requires that, when the investigation has reached its end, the special counsel “shall provide the Attorney General with a confidential report explaining the prosecution or declination decisions reached by the Special Counsel.” It also says that “the Attorney General may determine that public release of these reports would be in the public interest” but stresses that a public disclosure must “comply with applicable legal restrictions.”
Recent polling shows that Americans overwhelmingly want Mueller’s report to be made public. According to a CNN poll this month, 87 percent of Americans want Mueller’s findings released.
