Should the Mueller Report be released in its entirety - What's Your Point?

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - This week’s panel:  Wayne Dolcefino – media consultant, Laura Moser – former Democratic congressional candidate, Bob Price – Associate Editor of Breitbart Texas, Tomaro Bell – Super Neighborhood leader, Keir Murray – Democratic strategist, Ben Streusand – conservative commentator, “Three Amigos”, KSEV Radio discuss the summary of the Mueller report and whether the full report should be released to the public.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller's report on the Russia investigation will be sent to Congress by mid-April and will not be shared with the White House beforehand, Attorney General William Barr said.

Barr's timeline, included in a letter to the chairmen of the House and Senate judiciary committees, sets up a possible showdown with House Democrats, who are insisting they see the full report next week.

In his letter, Barr said Friday he shares a desire for Congress and the public to be able to read Mueller's findings, which are included in the nearly 400-page report the special counsel submitted last week.

Barr said President Donald Trump would have the right to assert executive privilege over parts of the report. But he noted that Trump "has stated publicly that he intends to defer to me and, accordingly, there are no plans to submit the report to the White House for a privilege review."

Mueller officially concluded his investigation when he submitted the report last Friday. Two days later, Barr sent a four-page letter to Congress that detailed Mueller's "principal conclusions."

Mueller did not find that the Trump campaign coordinated or conspired with Russia, Barr wrote, and did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump obstructed justice. Barr said he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein decided on their own that Mueller's evidence was insufficient to establish that the president committed obstruction.

Barr said he is preparing to redact multiple categories of information from the report and Mueller is helping the Justice Department identify sections that will be blacked out in the public version.

Those include grand jury material, information that would compromise sensitive sources and methods; information that could affect ongoing investigations, including those referred by Mueller's office to other Justice Department offices and information that could infringe on the personal privacy and reputation of "peripheral third parties."

"Our progress is such that I anticipate we will be in a position to release the report by mid-April, if not sooner," Barr wrote.

Barr said last week's letter detailing Mueller's "principal conclusions" was not intended to be an "exhaustive recounting" of the special counsel's investigation.

Barr described Mueller's report as nearly 400 pages long, not including the tables and supporting materials, which he said sets forth Mueller's analysis, findings and the reasons for his conclusions.

"Everyone will soon be able to read it on their own," Barr wrote. "I do not believe it would be in the public's interest for me to attempt to summarize the full report or to release it in serial or piecemeal fashion."

Asked about Barr's commitment to release a redacted version of Mueller's report, Trump said he has "a lot of confidence" in Barr "and if that's what he'd like to do, I have nothing to hide." He spoke at Mar-a-Lago, his private estate in Florida.

Barr's letter drew a quick - and critical - response from Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, who had demanded the full Mueller report by April 2.

Nadler, D-N.Y., said that deadline still stands and called on Barr to join him in working to get a court order allowing the release of grand jury information to the committee, rather than spending "valuable time and resources" keeping portions of the report from Congress.

"There is ample precedent for the Department of Justice sharing all of the information that the Attorney General proposes to redact to the appropriate congressional committees," Nadler said in a statement. "Again, Congress must see the full report."

The Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said he appreciated Barr's update and looked forward to the attorney general appearing before his panel on May 1.

Members of Congress will be in recess for two weeks beginning April 12, which could mean that lawmakers will be out of town when the report is delivered.

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NEW YORK (AP) - When Attorney General William Barr releases a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller's report on the Russia investigation, several publishers will be ready to put it out in book form.

Barr notified Congressional leaders Friday that he expects to send them his report by mid-April. Mueller's findings are nearly 400 pages excluding tables and appendices, and Barr said Friday that material removed will include information related to ongoing investigations or that compromise sensitive sources. He added that President Donald Trump would not be reviewing the report in advance.

Government studies are not copyrighted and can be published by anyone. Melville House, Skyhorse Publishing and Scribner, in conjunction with The Washington Post, are among those with both print and digital editions planned, within two weeks or less of the report coming out. As with previous releases such as "The 9-11 Commission Report," the Mueller text also will likely be available for free from a government web site, but publishers plan to add their own analysis. The Skyhorse book will include an introduction by attorney Alan Dershowitz, a frequent Trump defender. The Scribner release will feature commentary from the Post's staff.

Melville House plans no analysis, saying the report should be seen "as is."

"It's supposed to be a non-partisan document, and readers should be given the respect of experiencing it without someone digesting it for them," Melville publisher Dennis Johnson said in a statement,

Barr's summary of Mueller's highly-anticipated report said that the investigation didn't find a criminal conspiracy between Russia and Donald Trump's campaign to swing the 2016 presidential election. Mueller's report did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump obstructed justice, but Barr said he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein decided on their own that Mueller's evidence was insufficient to establish that the president committed obstruction.

Some government publications have become popular books, notably the Warren Commission report on President John F. Kennedy's assassination and the "Starr Report" on President Bill Clinton's affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. An edition of the 9-11 Commission study, published in 2004, was a million seller and a finalist for the National Book Award. As of Friday afternoon, the Scribner and Skyhorse editions of the Mueller report were in the top 1,000 on Amazon.com.

Associated Press writers Chad Day and Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington and Jonathan Lemire in Palm Beach, Florida contributed to this report.