President Donald Trump is punching back against the New York Times report we told you about last night that suggested, “Some of Robert Mueller’s investigators see their report as more damaging for President Trump than the attorney general indicated“:
The New York Times had no legitimate sources, which would be totally illegal, concerning the Mueller Report. In fact, they probably had no sources at all! They are a Fake News paper who have already been forced to apologize for their incorrect and very bad reporting on me!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 4, 2019
The Washington Post later reported much of the same information:
The @washingtonpost confirmed what we've been saying. Attorney General William Barr wrote a four-page summary of the 300+ page Mueller Report to misinform the American people and cover up for the President. It’s a pattern we should all recognize by now.
Subpoena the report.
— Tom Steyer (@TomSteyer) April 4, 2019
But NBC News is reporting, via anonymous sources, that the anonymous sources quoted in the NYT and WaPost don’t have the complete picture. If Robert Mueller wanted to say the president had obstructed justice, he would have said so. But, he didn’t:
Justice Dept. officials say Barr had no choice but to render a judgment, because the regulations say that he is ultimately in charge of the investigation. If Mueller believed the president was guilty of obstruction, he could have said so, the officials argue — but he didn't.
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 4, 2019
According to NBC News’ sources, there was a “dispute within the special counsel’s office on the facts and the law was one factor behind Mueller’s decision not to make a call on the obstruction question”:
Three government officials have told @NBCNews that a dispute within the special counsel's office on the facts and the law was one factor behind Mueller's decision not to make a call on the obstruction question.
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 4, 2019
And the “lawyers and FBI agents on Mueller’s team could not reach an agreement about whether Trump’s conduct amounted to a corrupt — and therefore illegal — effort to impede the probe”:
The lawyers and FBI agents on Mueller's team could not reach an agreement about whether Trump's conduct amounted to a corrupt — and therefore illegal — effort to impede the probe, the three officials said.
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 4, 2019
Game over, petty much:
The feelings of some members of Mueller's team do not change the attorney general's legal conclusions—which technically cleared Pres. Trump on both obstruction and conspiracy with Russia. But the political impact continues, as Democrats seek more information on Mueller's findings
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 4, 2019
The DOJ also released an on-the-record statement answering allegations made in the NYT and WaPost that more of the Mueller report could have been released by now.
Maybe they shouldn’t have printed on every page, “May contain material protected under Fed. R. Crim. P. 6(e)” if they wanted those pages public?
JUST IN: Responding to reports about some Mueller team members' feelings about AG Barr's summary, Justice Dept. says Barr released his "bottom-line findings" & conclusions immediately given public interest, and work has been ongoing to release the Mueller report with redactions. pic.twitter.com/OwAa4q0q2w
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 4, 2019
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Related:
BOMBSHELL? NYT hints that some investigators think the Mueller report is more damaging than Barr says https://t.co/BPz5YXP9Jw
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) April 4, 2019
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