Mueller report expected soon
WASHINGTON — The new attorney general, William Barr, is preparing for the special counsel to deliver a report in coming weeks on the results of the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, two officials briefed on the Justice Department’s preparations said.
President Donald Trump’s legal team and other allies of the administration have incorrectly predicted an imminent end to the investigation by the special counsel, Robert Mueller, for well more than a year. It remains unclear whether Mueller might take further public action, such as additional indictments, before submitting his report to Barr.
Once the report is submitted, it is not certain how much of it will become public or when.
The submission of a report by Mueller would effectively mean his office is closing down. The special counsel would no longer be conducting investigations in conjunction with the FBI, and Mueller would not be opening any new lines of inquiry.
But active cases that have not yet been brought to a conclusion would likely continue. New prosecutors from outside the special counsel’s operation could pick up cases that remain in progress. And some cases that spun off from Mueller’s investigation — including those being conducted by the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan involving Michael Cohen and Trump’s business — would continue unaffected.
No matter what the special counsel concludes, the findings will be sure to send shock waves through Washington, with Trump’s presidency on the line and both Democrats and Republicans poised to spin the contents to their advantage. The Mueller White House is bracing for revelations that could politically damage Trump or open him up to the possibility of impeachment by the Democratic-controlled House, even if he is not accused of criminal conduct.
The transmittal of the report to Barr would also place the attorney general in the spotlight as he decides how much of the findings to share with lawmakers and the public.
Once Mueller’s report is in his hands, Barr will have to review it for any classified information that would have to be omitted from any summary that Barr might decide to release, a process that could take days or even weeks.
In a related development, The Washington Post reported that Paul Manafort will be sentenced in an Alexandria, Virginia, federal court for tax and bank fraud on March 8. Federal sentencing guidelines call for Manafort to spend roughly 19 to 24 years in prison.