Rudy Giuliani says Trump agrees it wouldn't be helpful to issue pardons before Mueller probe ends
President Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani told CBS News correspondent Paula Reid on Friday that he advised Mr. Trump not to issue any pardons until the conclusion of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Giuliani said Mr. Trump agrees that issuing pardons ahead of its conclusion would not be helpful.
Giuliani also said he will leave the case after the Mueller probe ends, and that it will be up to White House counsel to help decide whether anyone is pardoned.
Giuliani said Mr. Trump should pardon anyone the president believes has been treated unfairly.
Giuliani's comments came after he suggested earlier Friday that Mr. Trump could issue pardons to people swept up in the Mueller investigation. Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort was ordered to go to jail Friday while he awaits the beginning of his trial -- a trial that resulted from findings in Mueller's investigation.
"When the whole thing is over, things might get cleaned up with some presidential pardons," Giuliani told the New York Daily News Friday.
Giuliani told CBS News' Reid that the Department of Justice Inspector General report released Thursday makes it less likely Mr. Trump will sit down for an interview with Mueller because of the bias he believes was demonstrated by FBI official Peter Strzok. Strzok, according to the OIG report, said in texts to fellow FBI employee Lisa Page that "we'll stop" Mr. Trump's election.
But Strzok is no longer on Mueller's team. Giuliani argues the Strzok texts underscore the concerns the president and his legal team have about the origins of the Mueller probe and whether he will be treated fairly.
Giuliani said he expects to make a decision by July 4 as to whether Mr. Trump's personal legal team will cooperate and do an interview, or whether they will fight that request.
The president was asked by reporters Friday about the possibility of pardons for some of the former members of his campaign and White House. While he declined to say much on the matter, he told reporters, "I do want to see people treated fairly."