Dems moving forward with Barr contempt vote after DOJ talks break down

But the Justice Department threatens to ask Trump to invoke executive privilege to block a subpoena for the full Mueller report

The Justice Department is preparing to ask the White House to invoke executive privilege over special counsel Robert Mueller’s entire report and underlying evidence, a defensive move the night before Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are set to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt for refusing to make the report’s full contents available to Congress.

“In the face of the committee’s threatened contempt vote, the attorney general will be compelled to request that the president invoke executive privilege with respect to the materials subject the the subpoena,” Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd wrote in a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, asking the committee to hold off on its contempt proceedings.

The Justice Department’s latest move comes despite the fact that at least two lawmakers — Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) — have already viewed a less-redacted version of Mueller’s report than the one Barr made public last month.

Boyd emphasized that Trump has not yet asserted executive privilege but said Barr will urge the president to make a Read more

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