Special counsel Robert Mueller's findings will likely come to light despite the outcome, argues LawFare writer Benjamin Wittes.
If the results are not damning, "they will likely come out because the president's lawyers will want them to come out as a means of putting L'Affaire Russe to rest," writes Wittes, a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution.
And if not, if the president did obstruct justice or attempt to influence witnesses, "no attorney general will stand in the way of their transmission to the public or Congress," he says.
Bill Barr, Trump's pick to replace Jeff Sessions as attorney general, in June of last year warned Mueller's obstruction inquiry was "fatally misconceived," but later said he would not interfere in the investigation.
The Washington Post on Wednesday reported the White House legal team hired 17 lawyers in recent weeks to help prevent certain discussions Trump had with top advisers from being obtained by House Democrats or revealed to Mueller.
Mueller is said to be wrapping up his probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, but the report could remain private if the White House cites executive privilege.
Democrats have already pledged to subpoena a copy of Mueller’s full report should that happen.
Mueller, argues Wittes, can make sure his message gets across:
"Mueller knows how to write a document that will be peculiarly resistant to suppression by an administration that wants to suppress it if he has concerns on that score. It actually isn’t hard to do this. I know how to do it, and I don’t have a team of experts on the subject working for me."
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