Lawyers for President Donald Trump have advised him not to sit down for an interview with special counsel Robert Mueller, The New York Times reported, citing four people briefed on the matter. According to the unnamed persons, the lawyers were concerned that Trump could be charged with lying to investigators because of his history of making false statements and contradicting himself.
Recently, Trump said that he is eager to be interviewed under oath by Mueller, who is investigating the alleged Russian meddling in the U.S. presidential election and whether the president obstructed justice.
If Trump doesn’t sit for an interview, there will be a possibility that Mueller will subpoena the president to testify in front of a grand jury. That move could cause a court fight that would escalate the investigation and could ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. There could be some political consequences if Trump refuses to sit for an interview. Trump could be accused of hiding something. The possible court fight could prolong the special counsel’s inquiry, casting a shadow over Republicans.
However, John Dowd, a longtime Washington defense lawyer hired last year to represent Trump in the investigation, his deputy Jay Sekulow and many West Wing advisers, want Trump to refuse an interview request. They believe that Mueller might not be willing to subpoena Trump and set off a showdown with the White House that the special counsel could lose in court. They also believe that Mueller lacks the legal standing to question the president about some of the matters he is investigating.
According to the advisers, on matters like the allegations that Trump asked former FBI director James Comey to end the investigation into the former national security adviser Michael Flynn, Trump acted within his constitutional authority and cannot be questioned about acts that were legal, The Times reports.
Marc E. Kasowitz, Trump’s longtime lawyer from New York, and Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, said that Trump should not agree to be questioned.
“I don’t think the president of the United States, unless there are credible allegations — which I don’t believe there are — should be sitting across from a special counsel,” Christie said recently.
Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and an informal adviser to Mr. Trump, said the same last month.
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