House Passes Resolution to Have Mueller Report Made Public

The House passed a resolution Thursday urging special counsel Robert Mueller to release to the public his report once it is finalized.

The resolution was passed in a bipartisan vote where all 420 members voted in favor of it and none voted against. The resolution is not legally binding but passing it gives Democrats an opportunity to keep a spotlight on the issue while they are pushing for the Justice Department to release the findings of the Mueller investigation.

The document seeks to have the report released in full and provided to Congress.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer attempted to bring the report resolution to the chamber’s floor and asked his colleagues for unanimous support, but his effort was blocked by Majority Leader Lindsey Graham, who called for a special counsel to be appointed by Attorney General William Barr to investigate the Department of Justice’s handling of the Clinton email investigation and other matters.

“Let the American people know that the Republican majority in the Senate, at least for now, is blocking a resolution that the Mueller report should be made public,” Schumer later said.

Graham defended his decision, saying that he wants “everything looked at, not just Mueller.”

“Mueller is going to be able to do his job, he’s just about finished, I think. But nobody has lifted a finger to call for an investigation into the other side of the story. Was there two systems of justice, one for the Democratic candidate, one for the Republican candidate?” he added.

The special counsel’s report is expected in the next few weeks and for now, it is unclear how much of the findings in his report would be made public.

CNN conducted a poll last month, which showed that the majority of Americans are in favor of having the report available for them to see. Eighty percent of Republican voters and 92 percent of Democratic voters believe there should be a public report on what Mueller finds.

The special counsel is required by regulation to submit his report to Attorney General William Barr, who vowed during his confirmation hearing to be as transparent as possible. But Democrats have been seeking more assurances that the report will be released publicly.