Robert Mueller to Testify Before House Committee

By Guardian UK and Reuters

01 May 19

Representative Jerry Nadler told reporters the agreement was for Mueller to testify sometime in May

he chairman of the US House judiciary committee has said that it has agreed to hear testimony from special counsel Robert Mueller at a date yet to be determined, Reuters news agency reported.

Representative Jerry Nadler told reporters the agreement was for Mueller to testify sometime in May. Nadler’s committee is seeking to question Mueller on his investigation into Russian election interference in 2016 and possible attempts by Donald Trump to impede the investigation.

Mueller recently wrote a letter to the US attorney general, William Barr, expressing frustration with how Barr characterized the conclusions of his investigation into potential ties between Trump’s presidential campaign and Russia.

Mueller concluded his investigation last month and delivered a final report to Barr, spanning more than more than 400 pages. Mueller’s report, which was made public on 18 April, revealed nearly a dozen instances in which the actions of the president and his campaign may have amounted to obstruction. The report also stated that the Trump campaign was “receptive” to assistance from Moscow during the 2016 election and expected to benefit from Russian interference.

But in a letter released on 24 March – before the report came out – Barr cited Mueller’s conclusion that there was no criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Moscow and declared he did not believe there was sufficient evidence to charge Trump with obstruction of justice.

Meanwhile, the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee requested that the panel also hold a hearing with Mueller. The California senator Dianne Feinstein said on Wednesday that she had asked the Republican committee chairman, Senator Lindsey Graham, to invite Mueller to testify. However, Graham has said he does not think the special counsel needs to appear.