Trump says the Justice Department will decide how to handle Mueller's report

Donald Trump. — (Image credit: Getty Images)

President Trump said Wednesday that he has not spoken with Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker about Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

During a Monday press conference, Whitaker said he has been "fully briefed" on the investigation, and he thinks it's "close to being completed." While being interviewed by the conservative news outlet The Daily Caller on Wednesday, Trump said that "after almost two years, it certainly should be" nearing its conclusion.

The Daily Caller also asked Trump about signing off on the report Mueller will ultimately send to the attorney general. "They'll have to make their decision within the Justice Department," he said. "They will make the decision as to what they do." Trump added that he could have "taken a much a different stance, I could have gotten involved in this ... I could have terminated everything, I could have ended everything. I've chosen to stay out of it ... but I had the right to ... I had the right to end everything. ... Many people thought that's what I should do."

Article continues below

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.