JUSTICE DEPARTMENT/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA INVESTIGATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump said on Wednesday [1-30-19] he would let the Justice Department decide how to handle the special counsel’s report on an investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election and whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Moscow. Republican Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, William Barr, said at his confirmation hearing this month he would allow Robert Mueller to complete the probe and pledged to make as many details of the findings public as he can. [nL1N1ZS0U9] Asked in an interview with the Daily Caller conservative website whether he would make the decision on whether to release the Mueller report, Trump said ‘they’ll have to make their decision within the Justice Department.’ Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker said on Monday [1-28-19] that Mueller’s probe is ‘close to being completed.’ [nL1N1ZS1P8] Trump told the Daily Caller he has not spoken to Whitaker about whether the investigation is nearing its conclusion.”
–Reuters, “Trump Says He Will Let Justice Department Decide Handling of Mueller Report,” The New York Times online, January 30, 2019