TRUMP, MUELLER NEAR FINAL STAGES OF TALKS FOR INTERVIEW

WASHINGTON: Donald Trump’s lawyers and special counsel Robert Mueller appear to be nearing the final stages of negotiations over whether the US president will sit for questioning as the two sides continue jockeying over the scope of a possible interview.

Mueller’s team responded earlier this week to a proposal Trump’s lawyers submitted some 11 days ago that suggested the president would only answer questions about whether his 2016 campaign colluded with Russia, not whether he obstructed justice, said Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani.

Giuliani wouldn’t describe Mueller’s offer in detail, but the Washington Post reported Mueller pared down his list of questions, which still include ones related to obstruction of justice.

“I would describe it as a tiny bit of movement, not anything dramatic, but at least it is worth responding to,” Giuliani said of the offer.

The quiet exchange of proposals between the two sides stands in sharp contrast to a series of broadsides that Trump and his aides have launched at Mueller and his investigation.

Giuliani said negotiations are still ongoing and the two sides haven’t reached a point where they need to make their “last and best offer.”

Trump’s lawyers have been negotiating over an interview with Mueller since the end of last year. At one point, the two sides had agreed to an interview in January and were discussing the logistics when one of Trump’s lawyers at the time, John Dowd, called it off.