Nadler Wins Mueller Report Battle With Barr

Hooray!  House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) has finally won a key battle to deliver Mueller Report documents to Congress.

Politics
Following the March release of the Mueller Report, US Attorney General William Barr acted less like America’s legal representative and more like Donald Trump’s personal attorney when he joined congressional Republicans in blocking the final report from view by the Democrats. Additionally, Republicans attempted to consider the entire Mueller investigation “case closed” after having access to the report themselves while refusing to share the findings with their Democratic counterparts.

Chairman Nadler had threatened a contempt of court fight and a subpoena to force Barr into his legal obligation to provide the Mueller documents to the Democratically-controlled House Judiciary Committee. However, on Monday, the Justice Dept. was able to strike an 11th hour deal with Nadler to prevent a legal showdown and a flexing of muscle from Democrats hell-bent on showing Republicans just who’s boss of the House of Representatives.

The agreement will permit all Judiciary Committee members to see “Robert Mueller’s most important files … providing us with key evidence that the Special Counsel used to assess whether the President and others obstructed justice or were engaged in other misconduct,” Nadler said in a statement.

“These documents will allow us to perform our constitutional duties and decide how to respond to the allegations laid out against the President by the Special Counsel,” he continued.

Nadler added that although the last-minute agreement will “hold the criminal contempt process in abeyance for now,” he was quick to remind Barr and Republicans that the deal does not include a criminal contempt citation against Barr.

“I see no need to resort to the criminal contempt statute to enforce our April 19 subpoena, at least for now, so long as the Department upholds its end of the bargain,” Nadler said. “But our arrangement with the Department does not extend to the full scope of our request for the full Mueller report and its underlying materials, including grand jury information, nor does it extend to our demand that Don McGahn, a key fact witness, testify before this committee,” he added.

Realizing that Democrats mean business and will use every legal tool at their disposal to force him into respecting their judicial powers, Attorney General Barr directed Justice Dept. spokeswoman Kerri Kupec to praise Nadler’s decision.

“We are pleased the Committee has agreed to set aside its contempt resolution and is returning to the traditional accommodation process,” Kupec said in a statement. “The Department of Justice remains committed to appropriately accommodating Congress’s legitimate interests related to the Special Counsel’s Investigation and will continue to do so provided the previously voted-upon resolution does not advance.”

If William Barr and the Justice Dept. are serious about honoring their obligations to Congress, they will stop playing politics with the Mueller Report, stop protecting Donald Trump, start protecting the American people, and allow Democratic leaders on the Judiciary Committee to finally see the Mueller Report in its entirety.

OK WASSUP! discusses Politics:
Judiciary Chairman Nadler wins Mueller battle.