Justice Department threatens executive privilege over entire Mueller report

[Judi Lynn]

Source: CBS News


BY REBECCA KAPLAN
MAY 8, 2019 / 12:38 AM / CBS NEWS

The Justice Department warned it will ask the president to invoke executive privilege over the entire Mueller report if the committee does not cancel a planned vote to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt Wednesday morning, according to a letter from Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd to the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday evening.

It's a sharp escalation of the ongoing dispute between the committee and the Justice Department, which spent the day Tuesday negotiating over the House Judiciary Committee's subpoena for the entire Mueller report and underlying materials. In a statement, Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, Democrat of New York, said the subpoena vote would go forward as planned, in spite of the department's threat.

The committee's subpoena deadline lapsed Monday, launching the latest round of negotiations. House Democrats previously rejected the Justice Department's initial offer, which was to allow congressional leadership and the top Democrats and Republicans on the House and Senate Intelligence and Judiciary Committees to view a less redacted version of the report at the Justice Department, along with a handful of staff.

After the subpoena deadline passed and Nadler scheduled a contempt vote for Wednesday, Justice Department officials came to the Capitol for a meeting and offered to increase the number of aides who could view the report from one to two per member, to allow members to take their notes with them instead of leaving them at the Justice Department, and to discuss the redactions with other members who were allowed to view the report, according to a letter Boyd sent Nadler Tuesday evening.


Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/justice-department-threatens-executive-privilege-over-entire-mueller-report/

[Eyeball_Kid]

1. Trumpy is hoping that all of his jumping and dancing will distract the Dems. It won't. n/t

[C Moon]

2. Putin knows his U.S. government.

If THIS doesn't make Trump look guilty, what does?

[Kablooie]

3. Only Trump himself can declare executive privilege but then he takes on the responsibility.

That's not how Trump operates.
He always gets flunkies to carry out sketchy orders so if it goes south they suffer the consequences, not Trump.

That's why Cohen is in prison.
Trump ordered him to commit a crime so he could become president resulting in Trump becoming president and Cohen going to prison.
A perfect series of events, Trump style.

I doubt Trump would do this because the reason he picked Barr was to have someone else take the fall for all the shit he wants done.
He's not going to let Barr shovel the shit over to him.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

4. It's legalese for "I'm taking my ball and going home."

What is Trump hiding? He's got firewall after firewall protecting him, in the Department of the Treasury, the DOJ, and of course, his "trump card" on the SCOTUS, Justice Kavanaugh.

[beachbum bob]

5. report is on stuff before trump was president....EP can't be used to block investigation into under

lying crimes

[benfranklin1776]

6. High time to call this what it is-A criminal coverup plain and simple

No mincing words or dancing around it every Democrat must say this loudly and clearly. And then bring every bit of legal and political firepower to bear to bring this gang of treasonous thieving bastards to true justice. The survival of our democracy is at stake.

[MBS]

9. I agree 1000%. n/t

[Ramsey Barner]

7. Time to enter the Mueller Report into the congressional record,

the way Sen. Mike Gravel did with the Pentagon Papers in 1971, and what Elizabeth Warren started to do yesterday. That way it's public, forever.

[lark]

8. Now the (in)Justice Dept. is blackmailing congress?

Justice Dept under Barr racing drumpf to see who can commit the most crimes the soonest in their Russia conspiracy coverup and plans to work in conjunction with Russia and Israel to steal 2020 as well and subvert our constitution.

[lagomorph777]

10. A wee bit late for that.

Most of it (probably not the worst bits, but bad enough) are already downloaded to millions of computers.

[LudwigPastorius]

11. Trump doesn't even have to ask McConnell and company the question.

He knows the GOP will support a bloated, orange, lying, criminal douchebag over their sworn duty to protect the Constitution.

""