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WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr will testify before Congress on Wednesday for the first time since the release of a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report of his nearly two-year investigation into Russian election meddling and possible obstruction by President Donald Trump.
The hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, set to begin at 10 a.m. ET, is likely to be heated, with Democrats expected to grill Barr over reports that Mueller wrote a letter to him saying that the attorney general's initial four-page description of the special counsel's conclusions had caused public confusion.
In the letter and a subsequent phone call to Barr, Mueller said the attorney general’s brief summary of the 448-page report did not fully capture its "context, nature and substance," according to The Washington Post, which first reported on the letter late Tuesday.
Barr's letter to Congress, which was made public at the time, said the Mueller investigation "did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities." It also said the special counsel's investigation "did not draw a conclusion — one way or the other — as to whether the examined conduct constituted obstruction."
Democrats are claiming Barr misled Congress in testimony to Congress last month when asked about reports that Mueller's team was frustrated with his description of their conclusions.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., noted Tuesday that when asked during a Senate hearing whether Mueller supported Barr’s conclusion that there was insufficient evidence to conclude Trump had obstructed justice, Barr said he didn’t know, even though the attorney general had received Mueller's letter and spoken to him by phone two weeks earlier.
In a statement Tuesday night, Nadler said that he has demanded a copy of Mueller’s letter and asked that it be delivered no later than 10 a.m. Wednesday.
He also reiterated his request that Mueller testify before Congress.
"The Department of Justice has also been reluctant to confirm a date for Special Counsel Mueller to testify," he said. "Given this evening’s reports, I will press the Department to schedule that hearing without delay.”
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said in an interview Wednesday on “CBS This Morning” that Barr’s statements to Congress were “deliberately false and misleading” and “most people would consider that to be a lie.”
“He knew exactly what he was being asked by Congress, and he knew his answer was false," Schiff said. "So, look, there's no sugar-coating this. I think he should step down,”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., tweeted Tuesday that she also thought Barr had been misleading and called for Mueller to testify.
“Attorney General Barr misled the public and owes the American people answers," Pelosi wrote. "It’s time for DOJ to release the full report & all underlying docs — and finally allow Mueller to testify. Americans deserve the facts. Barr must stop standing in the way.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings, D-Md., echoed her in a post on Twitter.
“Barr misled Congress and the American people to protect the President," he wrote. "There must be consequences. We must see the letter, get the full report and docs, and hear directly from Mueller.”