WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s public testimony in Congress next month will have a profound impact, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee chairman said on Wednesday, predicting it would correct what he called a campaign of misinformation led by President Donald Trump’s attorney general.
Mueller’s two-year investigation found that Russia meddled in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and that the Trump campaign did not conspire with Russia, but the probe did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump obstructed justice.
U.S. House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler said the White House may try to block the planned July 17 hearings with Mueller in front of the House of Representatives’ Judiciary and House Intelligence committees, but was unlikely to succeed.
“I think it will have a profound impact,” Nadler told reporters a day after he and Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff announced Mueller’s coming appearance.
Mueller released a 448-page report on his investigation in April. Democrats contend that the public is not well aware of his findings because of efforts by the administration to present it in a positive light.
“I don’t think all that many people have read it. Attorney General (William) Barr led a campaign of misinformation and deceived the American people about what was in the report,” Nadler said.
“So I think it’s very important that the American people hear from Mr. Mueller as to what he did find, what the results of that two-year investigation were, and not have to rely on the misinformation spread by the attorney general.”
