Trump says 'there should be no Mueller report' in furious rant, as president escalates campaign to undermine Russia investigation
Donald Trump has said “there should be no Mueller report” in a series of tweets denouncing the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
It was just the latest misleading tirade Mr Trump has launched in recent months as the special counsel’s investigation appears to come to a close.
Mr Trump tweeted on Friday morning: “So, if there was knowingly & acknowledged to be ‘zero’ crime when the special counsel was appointed, and if the appointment was made based on the Fake Dossier (paid for by Crooked Hillary) and now disgraced Andrew McCabe (he & all stated no crime), then the special counsel should never have been appointed and there should be no Mueller Report.”
“This was an illegal & conflicted investigation in search of a crime. Russian Collusion was nothing more than an excuse by the Democrats for losing an Election that they thought they were going to win.”
He added: “THIS SHOULD NEVER HAPPEN TO A PRESIDENT AGAIN!”
Since the special counsel’s appointment in May 2017, the president has repeatedly tried to undermine Mr Mueller’s work, casting the probe as a “witch hunt” and proclaiming there was “NO COLLUSION” with Russia.
Under Justice Department guidelines, Mr Mueller will produce a confidential report to attorney general William Barr that explains his decisions to pursue or decline prosecutions.
Mr Barr will then prepare his own report that would be released to the US Congress. He has said he intends to share some information with the public, though it’s unclear whether the special counsel’s actual report will ever be made public.
Six of Mr Trump’s aides or advisers have been charged in Mr Mueller’s investigation.
On Friday, six House Democratic committee heads called on Mr Barr to make the full report public, including any “evidence of misconduct” by the president.
The US House of Representatives also voted overwhelmingly across party lines for a resolution calling on the Justice Department to make the report public and available to Congress.
Mr Mueller’s team has been dwindling in recent weeks and lawyers from the US attorney’s office in Washington were assigned to the criminal case of Mr Trump confidant Roger Stone since his arrest last month, which could be an indication the special counsel is planning to hand off the investigation.
The White House said the president will let the attorney general decide whether to release the findings of the Russia investigation to the public.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Mr Trump was “following the proper process” by leaving the decision to Mr Barr. But she stressed that the White House was not concerned about the findings.
Ms Sanders said Mr Trump was president because he was the “better candidate,” adding that “he didn’t need to, nor did he collude with the Russians.”
Additional reporting by AP
