Maryland Lawmakers Respond To Mueller Report Release
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — With the Mueller special counsel report finally out, some Maryland lawmakers have put in their two cents about the release of the Mueller report, and what the government's next steps should be.
The resounding call: more transparency, and put Mueller in front of Congress to testify.
Mueller Report: Justice Department Releases Special Counsel Report
Rep. Elijah Cummings, Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, issued the following statement on the release of the redacted version of Special Counsel Mueller's report:
"The President and his Attorney General expect the American people to be blind to what we can now see. This report catalogues in excruciating detail a proliferation of lies by the President to the American people, as well as his incessant and repeated efforts to encourage others to lie. Contrary to Attorney General Barr's attempts at misdirection, it is crystal clear from the report that the Justice Department's policy against indicting a sitting President played a key role in Special Counsel Mueller's analysis—in fact, it is the very first point in the obstruction section of his report. Unfortunately, we still have only part of the story, and Congress must subpoena the full report and all underlying documents."
Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger said in a statement in part:
"Congress must hear from Attorney General Barr and Special Counsel Mueller directly. We must subpoena the entire report. We must continue to follow the facts,"
Both Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) both called for Robert Mueller to testify before Congress.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) said he believes Attorney General William Barr made "political determination to help President Trump", not a legal one.
Sen. Cardin also called for the American people to read the report for themselves and draw their own conclusions.
Cardin said in a statement in part:
"President Trump consistently took steps to deny Russian involvement in tampering in our elections, resisted efforts to hold Russia accountable, besmirched the reputation of the Special Counsel while trying to dismiss him or willfully impede his investigation, and repeatedly attacked the integrity of our intelligence and law enforcement agencies. Despite the president's egregious behavior, the Special Counsel's work has resulted in dozens of indictments and numerous convictions and guilty pleas, and several cases are still ongoing."
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