Mueller testimony should stick to public report, DOJ tells him

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department told former special counsel Robert Mueller that his public testimony should remain within the boundaries of his already released report on President Trump and the 2016 election.

Responding to a request from Mueller for the department’s guidance on his appearance at two House hearings scheduled for Wednesday, the Justice Department said Mueller shouldn’t discuss ongoing cases and that some details of his work may be covered by executive privilege.

The DOJ has sent former Special Counsel Robert Mueller a letter saying his congressional testimony should "not go beyond" his report findings. Read the full DOJ letter herehttps://t.co/u3YNR3XtnG

— Axios (@axios) July 23, 2019

While Mueller has already indicated publicly that he has no intention of going beyond what’s in his 448-page report, the guidance may disappoint Democrats who want him to offer more details about multiple instances where he investigated Trump for possible obstruction of justice.

Justice Department policy “also precludes any comment on the facts developed and legal conclusions by the Special Counsel’s Office with respect to uncharged individuals, other than information contained within the portions of your report that have already been made public,” Bradley Weinsheimer, an associate deputy attorney general, wrote to Mueller in a letter Monday.

I am going to keep saying this until people listen —

As a matter of law, DOJ cannot mandate Mueller limit his testimony for anything aside from classified information. The courts have made this clear over and over regarding former employees. https://t.co/7RqiVNWpMu

— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) July 22, 2019

The former FBI director plans to deliver an opening statement Wednesday, but the prepared remarks haven’t been vetted by the Justice Department, according to Jim Popkin, a spokesman for Mueller.

“No, they have not — and will not,” Popkin said.

Mueller is set to testify Wednesday for five hours before the House Judiciary and Intelligence panels.

Trump said earlier Monday that he won’t bother to watch Mueller testimony but confessed he probably can’t resist sneaking a peek.

“Literally every single assertion of fact from the President there is not true. It’s false.”@andersoncooper debunks misstatements President Trump made about Robert Mueller, in the lead up to to the former special counsel’s congressional testimony. https://t.co/bD1lVbbuXB pic.twitter.com/op0s36GsBq

— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) July 23, 2019

“I’m not going to be watching,” Trump told reporters Monday at the White House before adding, “Probably, maybe I’ll see a little bit of it.”

Mueller said he didn’t find enough evidence to prove that those around Trump conspired in Russia’s interference in the 2020 election and that he couldn’t exonerate the president on whether he sought to obstruct justice by impeding the probe.