Attorney General William Barr on Thursday released a redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s long-awaited 448-page report.
The report discusses what Mueller found in regards to a Russian government effort to interfere with the 2016 elections and his investigations into whether the Trump campaign colluded or conspired with the Russian government in their efforts.
The Mueller report states in a summary of its findings on collusion:
Although the investigation established that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome, and that the Campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts, the investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.
The report also discusses ten episodes Mueller’s team looked into regarding whether President Trump obstructed the investigation.
Barr said Mueller did not come to a traditional prosecutorial judgment, and he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, in consultation with lawyers at the Department of Justice, concluded that there was no criminal obstruction of justice.
Mueller’s report states there were “difficult issues” that prevented the Special Counsel team from “conclusively” determining that no obstruction occurred:
The evidence we obtained about the President ‘s actions and intent presents difficult issues that prevent us from conclusively determining that no criminal conduct occurred. Accordingly, while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.
The report is redacted for four categories of information: Anything obtained during grand jury proceedings; anything that would compromise intelligence sources and methods; anything that would interfere with ongoing cases; and anything that would embarrass or harm the reputation of those not indicted and peripheral to the investigation.
Mueller Report by Kristina Wong on Scribd