Trump-Mueller report: Explosive document reveals '11 instances of possible obstruction' as Democrats attack 'partisan' handling
The president is claiming victory. Democrats say not so fast.
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Your support makes all the difference.The explosive, and much-anticipated, release of the Mueller report has come.
Just after attorney general William Barr stood behind a podium and largely seemed to defend Donald Trump, the damaging report was released, showing that Mr Trump attempted to fire Robert Mueller multiple times and that he said he thought his presidency was "f****d" after the special counsel was appointed.
Mr Barr has declined to prosecute Mr Trump for obstruction, a decision he announced last year. But, the special counsel investigation highlights an incredible amount of damaging nuance to that decision.
And, Democrats were quick to challenge the assumption that Mr Trump did not commit a crime, or that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Instead, the 400 page document detailed dozens of interactions between the Trump campaign and Russian officials seeking to flip members of the Trump team.
In addition, the report detailed a shocking propensity for White House officials to disregard the president when it comes to the Russia investigation — and that willingness to ignore the president could be a saving grace for Mr Trump.
According to the report, Mr Trump attempted repeatedly to get his staff to force Mr Mueller's firing. Those staff members just ignored him, though.
There's a lot to unpack — and we've done most of that work for you below.
Please read along for the updates we posted throughout the day — from Mr Barr's press conference, to the shocking revelations of the report, to the reaction as Washington transitioned into its next phase of the Trump presidency:
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Details about what is likely to feature in the attorney general's press conference are slowly leaking out.
Donald Trump's former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, is calling on senior officials involved in attempting to find out if a presidential campaign had colluded with Russia - following extensively documented meetings - to be imprisoned.
Fox News has also decided to involve him in the build-up to the release of the Mueller report.
Donald Trump is very much reverting back to his original tactic of attacking those involved in the probes against him. It seems a long time since his attorney general wrote that four-page letter to Congress, which the White House wrongly claimed concluded "total exoneration" for the president.
Donald Trump is now retweeting posts by right-wing activist organisation Judicial Watch - five and counting - which focus on Hillary Clinton's emails and a conspiracy theory that the 'deep state' tried to bring down the president.
There is no evidence to support such a claim.
Michael Cohen and his lawyer Lanny Davis have promised the public to "fill in the bulk" of most of the redactions which have been made by Justice Department officials to the Mueller report.
Until its release later today, no one knows how much of the document has been kept secret, but Democrats are arguing any redaction is one too many.
Donald Trump is now promoting right-wing media outlets Fox News and One America News as ways in which to watch his attorney general preview the upcoming release of the Mueller report.
Safe to say virtually all of the TV networks will be airing the press conference at 9.30am ET (2.30pm GMT)
The attorney general is reportedly in the Justice Department headquarters at the moment.
There are some live streams of the room where Mr Mueller will deliver his press conference — and US cable news anchors have been jumping every time the curtains move.
Journalist Glenn Greenwald — who has remained critical of Democrats' focus on the Trump-Russia investigation — has tweeted to provide some context surrounding Mr Barr's decision not to charge the president with obstruction.
Some more important context to remember about what is happening this morning:
Michael Cohen's lawyer has said that his client is ready to "fill in the bulk" of what is redacted in the Mueller report by the Justice Department.
While that's an interesting line, it is worth noting that Mr Cohen theoretically has no way of knowing what the Justice Department has redacted in the first place. And, unless Mr Cohen is connected to every aspect of the investigation, he likely wouldn't know much about all of it anyway.
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