President Trump’s personal lawyers are reportedly attempting to negotiate terms and conditions for him being interviewed in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s alleged election meddling.
Mr. Trump’s legal team has considered leveraging a potential interview with the president to push the special counsel’s office toward ending its probe into the 2016 race, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing a person familiar with the discussions.
Among the proposals being considered is an arrangement that would see that “at least the Trump-related portion of the investigation” is concluded within 60 days of interviewing the president, the report said.
Additionally Mr. Trump’s attorneys are considering whether they can reach an agreement with Mr. Mueller’s investigators concerning the scope of the questions they may ask him, the report said.
Mr. Trump’s legal team currently expects any questions posed by the special counsel’s office will focus largely on the president’s firings of former national security adviser Mike Flynn and former FBI director James Comey, the Journal reported.
John M. Dowd, one of three attorneys representing Mr. Trump in the special counsel’s probe, called the Journal’s claims “false,” but declined to comment further, The New York Daily News reported.
“No president in history has been more cooperative or transparent with special counsel,” Mr. Dowd told The Washington Times earlier this week prior to the Journal’s report.
The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence assessed that the Russian government interfered in the 2016 White House race in order to sow discord and disrupt the campaign of Mr. Trump’s former opponent, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. The Justice Department subsequently appointed Mr. Mueller, a former FBI director, to investigate any links or coordinate between Russia and the Trump campaign, as well as “any matters that arose or may arise directly from that investigation.
The special counsel’s probe has resulted so far in criminal charges against at least four former Trump campaign associates and 13 Russians, among others, and its scope has allegedly expanded to include possible obstruction of justice charges related to Mr. Trump’s firing of both his former national security adviser and FBI director, according to multiple news reports.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly decried the probe as a “witch hunt,” but he told reporters earlier this year that he looked forward to meeting with Mr. Mueller’s investigators.
“Here’s the story, just so you understand,” Mr. Trump said in January. “There’s been no collusion whatsoever. There’s no obstruction whatsoever, and I’m looking forward to it.”
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.