A wee bit too Russky
Rudy reluctant to let Don speak
President Trump’s legal team in the Russia investigation is reluctant to allow prosecutors to grill him about possible obstruction of justice, according to a report.
“We have a real reluctance about allowing any questions about obstruction,” Rudy Giuliani told The Washington Post late Monday.
The former New York mayor and current Trump legal adviser also said that rather than decline special counsel Robert Mueller’s offer of an interview, the lawyers would seek to “continue the negotiations.”
“The president still hasn’t made a decision, and we’re not going to make a final decision just yet,” Giuliani said.
Talks have been ongoing for months with Mueller, who reportedly is examining Trump’s tweets and comments about the firing of former FBI Director James Comey and the investigation into Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn for evidence of obstruction.
Giuliani said he’s not worried that Trump will commit perjury if he agrees to the interview.
“But they are trying to get something on perjury and that’s not going to happen,” Giuliani said. “The answers, with regard to Flynn and the firing of Comey are already well known and they’re not going to change. He’d say the same thing in the interview that he’s said publicly.”
Mueller in March threatened to subpoena the president after Trump’s lawyers pushed back by trying to narrow the line of questioning.
In a letter to Trump’s legal team last week, Mueller suggested cutting the number of questions prosecutors would ask in person about obstruction and allow written answers.
Trump has said he’s eager to sit down with Mueller because he’s convinced he could convince him he did nothing wrong.
But his legal team has counseled against it, fearing the president doesn’t have the discipline to prepare for such a demanding interview.
Flynn, who stepped down from his White House position in February 2017, pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with a Russian ambassador and is cooperating with Mueller’s probe.
In May 2017, Trump fired Comey, who was then heading up the Russia investigation.