Attorney General William Barr aims to release a public version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report within weeks, according to multiple reports.
A Justice Department official told Reuters on Tuesday that Barr plans to make the report public within “weeks, not months.”
{mosads}The Justice Department did not immediately return a request for confirmation.
Barr told Congress over the weekend that he would consult with Mueller to identify any grand jury material that would need to be redacted from the public version of the report, in accordance with federal law. He also said he plans to determine any details that could impact ongoing investigations and redact them from whatever he releases publicly.
Barr released a four-page summary of what he described as Mueller’s “principal conclusions” on Sunday, revealing that Mueller did not find evidence to establish that members or associates of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election.
Mueller also did not draw a conclusion one way or another on whether Trump obstructed justice. Instead, his report “sets out evidence on both sides of the question,” Barr said in his letter to Congress. Ultimately, Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein determined that the evidence was “not sufficient” to establish that Trump obstructed the investigation.
Democrats have raised questions about Barr’s conclusion on obstruction and demanded the full release of Mueller’s report as well as the underlying evidence. On Monday, six House committee chairmen and chairwomen gave the Justice Department until April 2 to provide the report to lawmakers and begin producing the underlying evidence.
There is broad bipartisan support for releasing Mueller’s report, and Barr has said repeatedly that he is committed to releasing as much information about Mueller’s inquiry as possible while remaining within the constraints of the law.
In his letter over the weekend, Barr acknowledged the “public interest” in releasing Mueller’s report — which was submitted confidentially to the attorney general late Friday afternoon upon the close of the special counsel’s probe, in accordance with the applicable regulations.
The news Friday evening that Mueller had concluded his 22-month inquiry brought an end to an investigation that has dogged President Trump for most of his time in office.
Trump regularly attacked the investigation as a “witch hunt” and has seized on Barr’s letter as exonerating him of allegations of colluding with Russia.
“The Mueller report was great. It could not have been better,” Trump, referring to Barr’s summary, told reporters at the Capitol before meeting privately with Senate Republicans on Tuesday afternoon. Trump has also said he has no problem with Barr releasing Mueller’s report publicly.
The White House still has not been briefed on Mueller’s report, and the Justice Department does not plan to share an advanced copy of the public version with the White House, the Justice Department official reportedly said Tuesday.
Updated 5:06 p.m.