Mueller team digs deeper during shutdown
Only a few blocks from the National Mall, more than a dozen prosecutors working for special counsel Robert S. Mueller III have followed an unusual routine as they toil away on the Russia investigation.
When they leave the office at night, they often wonder if it could be their last day on the job, according to an attorney familiar with their work. Fearful President Donald Trump will try to shut down the criminal investigation, they’ve been compiling and writing their conclusions as they go, the attorney said.
Even if Trump doesn’t try to fire Mueller, the president’s lawyers have indicated they’ll try to keep the public from learning whatever the special counsel’s office has discovered. They’ve repeatedly said some information may be covered by executive privilege.
If Mueller tries to include in a final report details from White House documents or interviews with administration officials, “we specifically reserved our right to object,” said Rudolph W. Giuliani, who represents Trump.
The president refused Thursday to say whether any report from Mueller should be made public.
It’s unclear when Mueller’s probe will end, and the special counsel still has not secured the presidential interview he’s been seeking for more than a year.
Trump submitted some written answers shortly before Thanksgiving; Giuliani said prosecutors’ subsequent request to ask more questions in writing and in person was refused before Christmas.
Since then, he said, there has been no communication with the special counsel’s office.
Recently, however, there have been indications the end game could be drawing near. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has told associates he expects to step down after the Senate confirms William P. Barr as the new attorney general. That could come within weeks; Barr’s confirmation hearings begin Tuesday. Rosenstein has been supervising Mueller’s work.
Whenever Mueller does finish, it will kick off a new phase in the legal and political fights over the Russia investigation. The president’s legal team is preparing its own report rebutting whatever Mueller concludes.
Meanwhile, Democrats who control of the House of Representatives are laying the groundwork for their own investigations and public hearings.
Michael Cohen, Trump’s longtime lawyer and fixer, is scheduled to testify before the House Oversight Committee on Feb. 7, a month before he begins a threeyear prison sentence for a variety of crimes.
The first battle could be over how much becomes public from Mueller’s investigation, which focuses on ties between Trump’s campaign and Russia and whether the president obstructed justice.
Under the rules, the special counsel only needs to provide the attorney general with a confidential report explaining his decisions at the conclusion of the investigation. The attorney general by then will likely be Barr, a longtime friend of Mueller’s.
That doesn’t mean Mueller’s findings won’t be released. Prosecutors could explain more of their case in additional indictments and court filings. They could also ask the grand jury to issue a report.
In addition, the attorney general is required to notify Congress if he overrules any decisions by the special counsel. The attorney general can “determine that public release of these reports would be in the public interest.”
Democratic congressional leaders have already made clear they will demand that the report be turned over to them.
If a report is to become public, there will be fights over what is included. Intelligence agencies may want to redact sensitive information.