President Donald Trump may try to use executive privilege to suppress key portions of Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s investigation once his report is completed and submitted. There is no law that requires the report to be released to the public – or even to Congress – although Democrats have demanded the public be allowed to see it.
Bloomberg News reports that after Mueller submits his findings to FBI department leaders, “things could get messy.”
Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker or by William Barr, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general, are expected to hand the report over to President Trump. Both Whitaker and Barr have criticized Mueller’s investigation.
At that point Trump could claim executive privilege and block key portions of the report from being seen by Members of Congress or the public.
“We will look at it and see if the president thinks there is a valid claim and if there is, do we want to make it,” Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani tells Bloomberg.
“We reserve the right” to executive privilege. “We don’t know if we have to, but we haven’t waived it.”
He also said the Trump administration could use the court system to block the report, or portions of it, from being seen. Regardless of the outcome, that could tie the issue up for years, long enough for Trump to run for re-election and possibly win.
Read the full report from Bloomberg here.