Mueller pushes Congress to hold public Russia hearings - because he doesn't trust GOP to share info
BRAD REED
05 SEP 2017 AT 09:12 ET
Special prosecutor Robert Mueller doesnt want key witnesses in Congresss probes into Russias meddling in the 2016 presidential election to get away with hiding behind closed doors.
CNN reports that Muellers team has urged Congress to schedule testimony of some key witnesses in public session to avoid the possibility that the special counsel may be blocked from accessing information given to the committees privately.
So far, however, Congressional investigators have only scheduled private hearings with witnesses such as Donald Trump Jr., who in a 2016 email enthusiastically endorsed a plan to work with the Russian government to unearth damaging information on Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. Complicating matters, says CNN, is the fact that Muellers team has mostly kept Congress out of the loop when it comes to new findings and developments in its investigation.
That said, sources tell CNN that the Senate Intelligence Committee is debating whether to hold public hearings with some witnesses during hearings this fall. Additionally, the committee is now searching for new details around the late Republican operative Peter Smith, who claimed he tried to obtain Clinton emails hacked by the Russians during the last election season.
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http://www.rawstory.com/2017/09/mueller-pushes-congress-to-hold-public-russia-hearings-because-he-doesnt-trust-gop-to-share-info/