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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsCNN: Trump's Team Contacted Mueller Morning After Buzzfeed Report!
Later that day, Carr made the unprecedented press release regarding the accuracy of the Buzzfeed report...
https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/21/politics/rudy-giuliani-robert-mueller-buzzfeed/index.html
Giuliani, who is Trump's attorney, would not provide further details about what they said to Mueller's office. Friday evening, special counsel spokesman Peter Carr issued a rare statement rejecting the central claim in the BuzzFeed article, that Mueller has corroborating evidence (including testimony from Cohen) indicating Trump directed Cohen to lie to Congress about the deal.
The statement was drafted internally within the special counsel's office, which made the decision to release it, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the situation. The deputy attorney general's office, which oversees the special counsel, was only given a heads up it was coming Friday evening.
Carr declined to comment to CNN about any communication from the Trump legal team.
SunSeeker
(51,367 posts)Yep, I see Whitaker, Carr's ultimate boss, insisting on a statement refuting at least some aspect of the article, no matter cryptic it had to be.
C_U_L8R
(44,889 posts)The Trump conspiracy is itching to go on the offense
blueinredohio
(6,797 posts)BluegrassDem
(1,693 posts)I said that the DOJ forced a statement out. Trump told Whitaker to do something to diffuse the situation.
berni_mccoy
(23,018 posts)They might have semantics wrong on one thing.
triron
(21,914 posts)Somebody set this up and it's not Mueller (I hope).
D_Master81
(1,822 posts)I mean Buzzfeed releases a bombshell report and we all remember how tepid the pushback was. It was attacking buzzfeed and saying they were offended they had to answer such questions. But as was noted here on the board, even on Fox a surrogate didnt deny the story. Then at night Muellers office releases a cryptic statement denying parts of the story but not saying its a false story. Then Team Trump and everyone on the right begins to deny and attack and go on the offensive, but they didnt before the statement. Yet buzzfeed doesnt back down and says their sources are telling them not to. Which goes back to Mueller never said the story was false.
Joe941
(2,848 posts)Kingofalldems
(38,359 posts)FreepFryer
(7,077 posts)With the impeachment drum pounding in their ears after the Buzzfeed story broke, Trump et al contact Mueller and point to various factual inaccuracies in the Buzzfeed piece (whatever their scope or centrality), claiming aggrieved status and threatening to use them to attack the integrity of the investigation and/or on appeal unless Mueller makes a statement repudiating the story in full.
Knowing they cannot provide the public with information involved in the investigation, Mueller et al instead decide to issue their (vague, unspecific, variably interpretable) statement asserting mischaracterizations of specific documents and testimony and nothing else.
No one is left happy, but the investigation continues and their buggy suspect relaxes, ever so slightly, creating time for the political process to continue to develop.
BluegrassDem
(1,693 posts)The Dems were freaking out and was ready to start impeachment next week (as would be necessary) and Mueller wasn't ready for this and they needed to diffuse it quick.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)Trump telling Cohen to lie) and didn't hear that? Don't know all they details...just sounds like justification for WH to force statement? Didn't BF mention tapes?
Response to berni_mccoy (Original post)
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triron
(21,914 posts)Joe941
(2,848 posts)Grasswire2
(13,564 posts)He'll say anything to divert.