WASHINGTON, D.C.–The Mueller Report did not contain any information that points to collusion with Russia by Pres. Trump or the Trump campaign in 2016. Attoeny Gen. William Barr spoke at a news conference Thursday morning, before the expected release of the partially-redacted report.
But, Russia made an effort to interfere with the election by hacking the Clinton campaign, and disseminating misinformation and disinformation to the American people, via social media, said Barr.
Barr also said the information in the report from Special Counsel Robert Mueller did not point to evidence of obstruction of justice by the president. He said the president faced an “unprecedented” effort by federal agents and others to undermine his presidency as he assumed office.
“His investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities,” said Barr, addressing different sections of the report. “Thanks to the special counsel’s thorough investigation, we now know that the Russian operatives who perpetrated these schemes, did not have the cooperation of Pres. Trump or the Trump campaign.”
Barr said the Internet Research Agency, or IRA, tried to “sew discord” with American voters through social media. That agency is closely associated with the Russian government, he said.
Barr also said Russian operatives attempted to hack into the Hillary Clinton campaign and steal their files, with the goal of public publication of those files. Barr again said the Trump campaign had nothing to do with it.
He said the special counsel brought charges against Russian nationals. They have not yet been caught.
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Barr said some stolen documents were transmitted to WikiLeaks, which made a “document dump”.
Barr said the special counsel investigated links to Russians and found that there was no collusion by virtue of individuals from Russia being linked to anyone in the Trump campaign.
“After reviewing these contacts, the special counsel did not find any conspiracy.”
“After nearly two years of investigation, thousands of subpoenas, hundreds of warrants, and witness interviews, the special counsel confirmed that the Russian government sponsored efforts to illegally interfere with the 2016 presidential election, but did not find that the Trump campaign or other Americans colluded in those efforts,” said Barr.
Barr said there is substantial evidence to show the president was frustrated and angered by a sincere belief that the investigation was undermining his presidency. He also commented that the media was relentless in its speculation about the president’s culpability.
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