Every page of special counsel Robert Mueller’s final report may contain confidential grand jury information, limiting how much it the public may ultimately see, a Justice Department spokeswoman said Thursday.
“As the Attorney General stated in his March 29th letter to Chairman [Lindsey] Graham and Chairman [Jerrold] Nadler, he does not believe the report should be released in ’serial or piecemeal fashion,’ ” said Kerri Kupec, a department spokeswoman. “The Department continues to work with the special counsel on appropriate redactions to the report so that it can be released to Congress and the public.”
On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee voted to give Mr. Nadler, New York Democrat, the power to subpoena special counsel Mr. Mueller’s report.
The vote occurred after six House committee leaders demanded Mr. Barr send them the nearly 400-page report without redaction, along with all of the evidence that supports its findings.
Attorney General William P. Barr said he expects to deliver a version of the Mueller report to lawmakers by mid-April if not sooner. But Democrats have demanded he turn over the entire report without redactions, something Mr. Barr has been unwilling to do.
“Given the extraordinary interest in the matter, the attorney general decided to release the report’s bottom-line findings and his conclusions immediately — without attempting to summarize the report — with the understanding that the report itself would be released after the redaction process,” Ms. Kupec said.
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Grand jury information must remain confidential under federal law. Typically, grand jury details are sealed because Justice Department guidelines prohibit the release of damaging information about individuals not charged with a crime.
The Mueller report may also include information that could reveal U.S. sources or confidential details about ongoing investigations.
The statement comes one day after The New York Times reported that some members of Mr. Mueller’s team have expressed frustration over the attorney general’s summary. Some members said the evidence against Mr. Trump was stronger than Mr. Barr suggested in his letter to Congress.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the confusion could easily be cleared up if the report is made public.
“The Mueller Report will be released,” she told reporters on Thursday. “To us, it is inevitable. To them, it is inconceivable. We have to shorten the distance between the inevitable and the inconceivable.”
In his four-page summary of Mr. Mueller’s report, the attorney general said the special counsel cleared the president and members of his campaign of colluding with Russia.
Mr. Barr also wrote that Mr. Mueller decided not to make a call on whether Mr. Trump obstructed justice. After consulting with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, Mr. Barr wrote the evidence did not amount to a prosecutable case of obstruction.
• Gabriella Muñoz contributed to this article.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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