A Justice Department spokesperson said Monday that the department will release a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Thursday.
The almost 400-page-long report has attracted a lot of attention since it was submitted to Attorney General William Barr in late March, following Mueller’s two-year long investigation. On March 24, Barr sent a letter to Congress summarizing the special counsel’s “principal conclusions.”
In the letter, Barr maintained the special counsel didn’t find any evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and “the Russian government in its election interference activities.” It added that Mueller came to no concrete conclusions about whether President Donald Trump had obstructed justice. However, Barr himself made that conclusion, saying that the President had not obstructed justice, ABC News writes.
Democrats in Congress have since then demanded that the attorney general release the full report, with all its evidence, arguing Barr’s handling of the issue was unsatisfactory. Barr defended his conclusions in testimony before Congress last week, maintaining that parts of the report have to stay confidential.
He also noted he would not seek a judge’s approval to disclose grand jury material, but said Democrats could “go to court” to obtain it if they wanted to.
The redacted version expected on Thursday will, nonetheless, offer a glimpse into Mueller’s lengthy and exhaustive investigation.
Democrats believe that the report contains evidence of wrongdoing and shows President Trump obstructed justice. Trump continues to oppose the release of the report, saying it exonerated him fully.
“Mueller, and the A.G. based on Mueller findings (and great intelligence), have already ruled No Collusion, No Obstruction. These were crimes committed by Crooked Hillary, the DNC, Dirty Cops and others! INVESTIGATE THE INVESTIGATORS!” he tweeted Monday.
The upcoming release of the report will most likely set up a battle between Democrats seeking the entire report and the Justice Department refusing to comply with their requests.
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