President Donald Trump has said he is worried he might face perjury charges if he gives statements under oath to the investigation into Russia's alleged role in his election victory. He told Reuters news agency he feared any "discrepancies" between his account and others could be used against him.
Trump renewed his attacks on Mueller in one of his regular morning tweet-storms. He described the former FBI director as “disgraced and discredited” and repeated claims that the investigation was a “Rigged Witch Hunt” while calling it “a National Disgrace”.
Disgraced and discredited Bob Mueller and his whole group of Angry Democrat Thugs spent over 30 hours with the White House Councel, only with my approval, for purposes of transparency. Anybody needing that much time when they know there is no Russian Collusion is just someone....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 20, 2018
McGahn was questioned
On the other hand, the White House counsel, Donald F. McGahn II, has cooperated extensively in the special counsel investigation, sharing detailed accounts about the episodes at the heart of the inquiry into whether President Trump obstructed justice.
McGahn’s cooperation is historically unique because President Trump waived both executive privilege and attorney-client privilege.
President Trump was so confident of his innocence that he waived both of these protections to allow the Special Counsel to thoroughly question the White House attorney.
Trump says he could run Mueller probe
Donald Trump also said that he could run a probe into the special counsel’s Russia investigation if he wanted to, but that he had decided to stay out for now.
Trump’s comments to Reuters come as jurors continue to deliberate charges against one of his former campaign managers, Paul Manafort, who is facing charges of bank and tax fraud.
Calls for Congress to step in will no doubt grow larger in the wake of Mr. Trump's latest comments on Twitter. The president went as far as claiming Mr.
Mueller and his team are “a national disgrace” who are looking to impact November's crucial midterm elections. In the interview, Trump also blamed the investigation for hampering his efforts to strengthen the country’s relationship with Russia and for sowing discord among the American public.
Trump did not say whether he would ultimately agree to be interviewed by Mueller. Trump’s legal team, led by Rudy Giuliani, expressed reservations about allowing their client to sit down with the veteran prosecutor. However, they continue to negotiate with Mueller’s team over whether and how investigators can question Trump about possible obstruction of justice in the Russian investigation.
Check out this space for more interesting updates on Mueller inquiry.
