Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Monday blocked a move by Senate Democrats to call on Attorney General William Barr to release special counsel Robert Mueller’s full report on the Russia investigation.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called up the measure but McConnell, R-Ky., shot it down.
McConnell said it’s too early to call for the full release of the report because Mueller is not finished with the work, nor is the Department of Justice. Barr told Congress he is working with Mueller to determine how much of the report can be released without jeopardizing other investigations associated with the special counsel probe.
“The special counsel and the Justice Department ought to be allowed to finish their work in a professional manner,” McConnell said.
Schumer argued the resolution would not call for an immediate release of the report.
It’s the second time Schumer attempted to bring up the resolution.
Democrats in the House are also calling on Barr to provide the full report.
So far Barr has provided a four-page summary that said Mueller found no collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians ahead of the 2016 election. The summary also said Mueller’s report did not conclude whether Trump obstructed justice, but the attorney general said he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein found there wasn’t “sufficient” evidence to determine whether a crime was committed.
[Related: Jim Jordan says ‘release it all,’ not just the Mueller report]
