Trump and Attorney General Barr had an 'animated' talk, reportedly about the Horowitz report, in the Oval Office

Trump and Barr talking in the Oval Office

(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

President Trump's departure for a political rally in Louisiana was delayed by about 45 minutes on Thursday evening because he was having an "animated" conversation with Attorney General William Barr in the Oval Office, according to the White House press corps, which could view but not hear the conversation. Also in the Oval Office were White House Counsel Pat Cippollone and White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham.

When asked about the meeting on Fox News, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said he "sadly" couldn't say what Trump and Barr discussed, but he told Martha MacCallum "that all the gentlemen had Diet Cokes in the room — that's very serious." When MacCallum asked if they were discussing Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz's imminent report on the origins of the FBI's investigation of Russia and Trump's campaign, Gidley insisted Trump is "trying to stay out of all things that Attorney General Barr is doing as it relates to investigating the investigators."

But the Horowitz report did come up in their conversation, two sources told CNN. Barr got a draft of the report last month, and Lawfare's Susan Hennessey wryly suggested that the nominally independent attorney general discussing the nominally independent DOJ inspector general's nominally apolitical report with Trump may not be totally above-board.

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Witnesses have been given two weeks to review the parts of the report they feature in before it is released publicly. They have to sign nondisclosure agreements and can't request revisions in writing, The Washington Post reported Thursday, raising concerns about the report's integrity. But Horowitz's office told the Post late Thursday night that witnesses can submit written feedback "consistent with rules to protect classified information."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.