Donald Trump claims Robert Mueller probe is interfering with presidential duties
WASHINGTON — As negotiations over his potential testimony hit a sensitive point, President Trump complained Wednesday that the Russia investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller is interfering with presidential duties.
“There was no Collusion (it is a Hoax) and there is no Obstruction of Justice (that is a setup trap),” Trump tweeted before citing a litany of economic and foreign policy challenges on his plate.
“What there is is Negotiations going on with North Korea over Nuclear War, Negotiations going on with China over Trade Deficits, Negotiations on NAFTA, and much more. Witch Hunt!” Trump said.
For a second straight day, Trump protested the Russia investigation amid negotiations by attorneys over whether he will comply with Mueller’s request to provide testimony — talks that are shadowed by the prospect of an unprecedented subpoena of a sitting president.
John Dowd, one of the president’s attorneys, confirmed that Mueller raised the prospect of a grand jury subpoena at a meeting in early March if the president refused to provide testimony.
There was no Collusion (it is a Hoax) and there is no Obstruction of Justice (that is a setup trap). What there is is Negotiations going on with North Korea over Nuclear War, Negotiations going on with China over Trade Deficits, Negotiations on NAFTA, and much more. Witch Hunt!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 2, 2018
Dowd and other Trump aides have argued that a prosecutor does not have the legal authority to subpoena a sitting president, and suggested they would challenge such a move in court.
That sets up the prospect of a long legal battle that would run parallel to the sprawling Mueller probe.
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Presidential advisers have been divided for months on whether Trump should speak to Mueller and his team. Some say he should not, citing reams of documents the Trump team has provided to the special counsel that answer their questions, or fearing that prosecutors may spring a “perjury trap” on Trump.
In his latest tweet, Trump referred to the obstruction of justice investigation as “a setup trap.”
Other aides said it is quite possible that Trump and Mueller will agree to some sort of testimony, perhaps written answers to questions posed by the special counsel.
Trump’s renewed complaints about the Mueller investigation come after release of a list of more than four dozen questions the special counsel would like to ask the president.
The questions cover the full range of the probe, from whether Trump knew about Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election to whether he sought to obstruct justice by firing then-FBI Director James Comey and ponder changes in the Justice Department.
While pondering whether to testify, Trump is setting up an unprecedented meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in an effort to get him to give up nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile, Trump aides are negotiating with China about proposed tariffs that threaten to detonate a trader war between the world’s two biggest economies.Â
As also cited in Trump’s tweet, the administration is negotiating changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada.
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