Mueller is taking another shot at interviewing Trump as the president escalates his attacks on the Russia probe
Robert Mueller, the special counsel in charge of the Russia investigation is back to negotiating with President Donald Trump's lawyers for an interview with the commander-in-chief, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing two unnamed people familiar with the discussions.
Talks between the two sides have apparently been at a stalemate, partly due to the public stance Trump's defense attorney Rudy Giuliani has taken on the matter. Giuliani, in a series of media interviews over the last few months, has frequently changed his tune about the conditions he would require before granting an interview.
The news follows renewed attacks from Trump on Wednesday. The president used his Twitter account to jab Attorney General Jeff Sessions and urge him to stop the Russia probe. Sessions recused himself from the investigation last year and his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, is overseeing it.
The special counsel Robert Mueller is reportedly offering to limit his investigators' questions if President Donald Trump's lawyers allow him to sit for an interview in the Russia investigation, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing two unnamed people familiar with the talks.
Negotiations between the two sides have been at a standstill in the months since the president added Rudy Giuliani to his legal team. Giuliani, in a number of interviews with news outlets, has frequently changed his tune about what terms he would accept in order for Trump to talk to Mueller.
The Post reports Mueller sent a letter to Trump's lawyers this week offering to shrink the list of questions he wants to ask Trump about obstruction of justice. That subject is one of the several avenues the special counsel is investigating as part of the Russia probe, which is broadly looking into Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election and whether member of Trump's campaign colluded with the Russians.
Earlier this year, former Trump defense attorney Jay Sekulow compiled dozens of prospective questions Mueller could ask the president, based on details from talks between the two parties. It's not yet clear precisely what questions Mueller's investigators have for the president.
Trump has previously expressed his willingness to talk to Mueller under oath, but has waffled on that issue. He took a more defensive stance when murmurings of a presidential subpoena emerged.
Giuliani on Wednesday reiterated that Trump is open to a Mueller interview, but quickly pulled back in an interview that aired on CNN.
"I'm not going to give you a lot of hope it's going to happen, but we're still negotiating," he said.
