Mueller's not being pressured to wind down his probe immediately after midterms, source says
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has not given special counsel Robert Mueller a certain date by which his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election must be completed, a source familiar with the investigation within the Justice Department said.
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But speculation that it will wrap up immediately after the November midterm elections is off the mark, the source said. Instead, the probe is expected to wind down by the end of the year.
"Mueller and his team have to provide a confidential report to Rosenstein at the end of the investigation," the source said. "As far as timing, the investigation is obviously ongoing, and I'd expect it to continue well after the midterms."
Rosenstein, who oversees the investigation, on Wednesday called the probe "appropriate and independent," in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, but declined to comment on when it would end.
President Donald Trump has continued to complain that the investigation is unfounded and a waste of taxpayer money, but one of the complicating factors surrounding its completion date is the fact that his legal team is still working on providing written answers to Mueller's questions. Additionally, his team has not reached a final agreement on whether the President will sit down for an interview about possible obstruction of justice related to his firing of FBI Director James Comey.
Yet the source pushed back against a recent report that Mueller is facing intensifying pressure from Rosenstein to deliver additional indictments or shut down his investigation as inaccurate. The source would not discuss any of the potential findings in the report.
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