Trump says he does not mind if public sees Mueller's Russia probe report

[March 21, 2019]  By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he does not mind if the public is allowed to see the report that Special Counsel Robert Mueller is preparing about his investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and any possible links to the Trump campaign.

"Let it come out, let people see it, that's up to the attorney general ... and we'll see what happens," Trump told reporters at the White House.

"We'll see if it's fair," he added.

Mueller is preparing to submit a report to U.S. Attorney General William Barr on his findings, including Russia's role in the election and whether Trump unlawfully sought to obstruct the probe. Trump has denied collusion and obstruction. Russia has denied interfering in the election.

Barr already is coming under pressure from lawmakers to make the entire document public quickly, though he has wide latitude in what to release.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 420-0 last week on a non-binding resolution calling for Mueller's report to be released both to Congress and to the public, but it is not clear how the measure will fare in the Senate.

Asked if the public should be allowed to see the report, Trump said: "I don't mind." He said he had no idea when it would be released.

President Donald Trump talks to reporters as he departs on travel to Ohio at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

As he has before, Trump questioned the legitimacy of Mueller's investigation.

"I had the greatest electoral victory - one of them - in the history of our country, tremendous success, tens of millions of voters and now somebody's going to write a report who never got a vote," he said.

Mueller was appointed to handle the Russia investigation in May 2017 after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, who had been overseeing the effort. Mueller has previously held several senior positions in the Justice Department, including FBI Director.

(Reporting by Steve Holland; writing by David Alexander and Andy Sullivan; editing by Tim Ahmann and Jonathan Oatis)

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