The White House expects to see Mueller's findings before entering Congress



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The lawyers want the White House to have the opportunity to claim the executive's privilege over information from documents and interviews with White House officials, sources said.

The White House's review of the executive's privilege claims falls within its legal jurisdiction, but could give rise to a political battle against President Donald Trump's perception of trying to protect certain information. from the public about an investigation that had revolved around him since the first day of his tenure. Presidency.

Department of Justice lawyers could warn him against certain assertions if they did not think it was defensible. If Trump claims the privilege of the executive, the decision could be challenged in court if it is contested, which Democrats would almost certainly do.

"There is always a tension between what looks best on the political level and what represents the interests of the institution – the office of the presidency," said a source close to the House -Blanche. "Preserving the privilege of the executive overrides the political lens."

Although Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, suggested that the privilege could be used to keep parts of the report out of public view, the issue is the White House, not the personal attorneys. Of the president.

The Ministry of Justice and the White House refused to comment.

While the White House is preparing for the conclusion of Mueller's investigation, some officials have expressed some anxiety about the contents of the report, even as they welcome the end of the investigation. .

A person close to the president's legal team has been cautious, a sign of the level of concern caused by the stalling of Mueller's investigation.

"Let's get the plane on the runway and see what we have," said the source.

But Trump, who spent part of the weekend greeting Mueller on Twitter, does not plan to be blinded by what the Justice Department could reveal to the report and the public. Instead, his lawyers expect the content to be read first by them.

The white houses under the Republican and Democrat presidents have claimed the privilege of the executive to prevent disclosure of certain information to Congress, and White House and Trump attorneys have personally indicated that they could claim this privilege over information that would be disclosed to Congress and the public.

At the confirmation hearing last year's hearings, Mr. Barr stated that he had "no idea what the report would contain", but that "something" 39 One could invoke the privilege of the executive "s" exists "elements that are the subject of a claim of privilege from the executive could be made."

Under current regulations, Barr has wide discretion to decide what to share with lawmakers – but the issue could eventually be the subject of protracted legal battles.

Transparency issues

The House adopts a resolution calling for the publication of the Mueller Report

Democrat and Republican legislators have repeatedly stressed the importance of transparency in publishing the findings of the two-year investigation stemming from Russia's interference in the 2016 elections.

Last Thursday, the House overwhelmingly approved a resolution calling for the publication of Mueller's report.

A source close to the president's legal team said the White House had authorized talks with White House officials, with the understanding that claims of executive privilege could later be raised. The White House has sent more than a million documents to the special council office, but all of these documents would not be subject to the privilege of the executive, any more than the campaign documents.

"The White House should not advise the Attorney General on what it should share and not what it has to share – it is the Attorney General and he is independent about it," he said. said Mark Tuohey, a former prosecutor who has participated in previous investigations.

"The report of the special council, which could be the subject of a summary by the Auditor General, deals with the possible behavior of the President of the United States, his staff and his staff. should not be discussed with the White House before the issue is sent to Congress, "he said.

But Tuohey said it would be appropriate for the Department of Justice to give the White House lawyer's office the opportunity to give its views on specific information that may be the subject of Protection from the privilege of executive power.

The confidential report of Mueller to Barr should be published from one day to the next.

The imminent publication of the report led some of the president's aides to conclude that Mueller was abandoning his request for an interview for an interview with Trump, which would be a victory for the White House and his legal team.

Indeed, many Trump associates see in the conclusion of Mueller's tenure – which symbolically consumed at least a few months of administration – a positive development that could allow the president and his team to progress.

This seemed to be Trump's optimistic view on Monday when he tweeted his belief that the report would prove to be a feint.

"Very few think it's legitimate! We'll know it soon?" he wrote.

Mueller's training effect

Whitaker expressed his concerns about the Cohen case while he was head of the justice department

Of course, the consequences of Mueller's investigation are far from over, including the various auxiliary probes launched as a result of his team's findings. The Southern District of New York is continuing investigations into issues related to the project of the President and Democratic Legislators to continue a series of investigations after the closure of the Mueller investigation.

Most White House assistants are excluded from Mueller-related questions and are preparing to move Trump's agenda beyond the border wall battle and the North Korean summit, which together have consumed the first part of the year.

However, whatever the problems the administration is addressing later, the administration will fight the revelations of the Mueller report.

A White House aide said the Trump team was pressing the "reset button" after being engaged in grudging budget negotiations and talks on North Korea.

Emmett Flood, the White House lawyer responsible for handling the White House's response to Mueller's investigation, and officials held meetings to denigrate the White House's response to everything that will made public, said a senior White House official.

The officials have prepared the broad outlines of the White House's response to different scenarios, depending on the extent of Barr's revelations to Congress and the exculpatory or prejudicial nature of the president's findings, the official said. These efforts were largely undertaken by Flood and his team, rather than by officials from the White House press store, who sought to distance himself from the Mueller investigation.

The White House has tried to avoid commenting on the investigation, but that could change once the Mueller report has been released, especially if it is exculpatory, said a senior official of the White House. The White House has repeatedly referred reporters to the president's legal team on issues related to the investigation, but White House officials reacted to the report of the president or press secretary of the White House. the White House, Sarah Sanders, depending on the result.

Democrats' investigations are accelerating and the White House is trying to figure out how to be perceived as compliant with demands while handing out a minimum of potentially privileged documents, assistants said.

"This White House will do everything legally in its power to work with the Democrats and the House to provide them with the information they need," said a senior White House official. "But it has to be legal, fair and equitable."

While White House officials discuss the official response to Mueller 's conclusion, councilors are also aware that their plans could go wrong with a tweet from Trump, who has repeatedly called on Twitter to assault the US. Mueller's investigation as a "witch hunt".

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