Giuliani met with Mueller to discuss possible Trump interview: report

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani met with special counsel Robert Mueller on Tuesday to reopen negotiations over a possible interview with President Trump, The Washington Post reported. 

Giuliani, Trump’s newly appointed personal lawyer, cautioned that Trump and his advisers remain opposed to a possible interview with Mueller’s investigators who are examining possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Giuliani also sought answers from Mueller on when the investigation is expected to end, according to the Post. 

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Mueller reportedly told Giuliani that he wanted to ask the president about actions he took during the transition period in late 2016, before his administration, and in early 2017, his first months in office. Understanding why Trump took certain actions, Mueller told Giuliani, would help investigators determine whether to end the investigation into possible obstruction of justice. 

One source told the Post that Mueller and Giuliani’s meeting was relaxed and allowed both sides to “feel each other out.”

The meeting offers insight into the former New York City mayor’s role on Trump’s legal team. Giuliani, who was hired to the team last week, said at that time that he hoped to negotiate a swift end to the Russia investigation.

“I’m doing it because I hope we can negotiate an end to this for the good of the country and because I have high regard for the president and for Bob Mueller,” Giuliani told the Post last week.

Trump once expressed willingness to sit for an interview with Mueller’s team, but has since rejected the idea. John Dowd, Trump’s former lead attorney who resigned last month, was opposed to such an interview.

Trump has repeatedly called Mueller’s investigation a “witch hunt,” and has urged an expedited end to the probe, which has cast a shadow over much of his time in the White House. The president has denied that there was any collusion between his campaign and Russia.