Attorney General William Barr said Thursday that Special Counsel Robert Mueller mentions 10 “episodes” of potential obstruction of justice in the still-unreleased report.
Some pundits have cast doubt on the intent behind this morning’s press conference. They say Barr is covering for President Donald Trump, and trying to set the narrative behind the Mueller Report before its actual release.
An attorney general committed to the rule of law would let the report speak for itself, and would take questions after people have had a chance to look at it.
Not try to *for the second time* shape the public perception of a document the public has not had the chance to see.— Rick Hasen (@rickhasen) April 18, 2019
In any case, Barr repeated and emphasized his earlier summation of the Mueller Report: That the special counsel found “no collusion” and that evidence did not support a finding of obstruction of justice.
Mueller, he said, reviewed 10 episodes of potential obstruction of justice in the case. He said that while he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein disagreed with some of the special counsel’s “legal theories,” they adopted that framework in their analysis, and determined the findings didn’t support obstruction.
“And as the Special Counsel’s report acknowledges, there is substantial evidence to show that the President was frustrated and angered by a sincere belief that the investigation was undermining his presidency, propelled by his political opponents, and fueled by illegal leaks. “
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) April 18, 2019
Barr didn’t detail the 10 episodes. Conservative attorney George Conway, Trump critic and husband to the president’s counselor Kellyanne Conway, wondered aloud why this wasn’t discussed when the attorney general wrote his original summary of the report.
Was there some reason all of this couldn’t have been disclosed on March 24? https://t.co/yZQVlsS2BE
— George Conway (@gtconway3d) April 18, 2019
[Image via Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images]
