Administration

Trump renews calls for interview with Mueller: report

President Trump is reportedly again urging his legal team to allow him to have a sit-down interview with special counsel Robert Mueller, believing it will give him the opportunity to clear his name.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that despite Trump’s legal team advising him against sitting down with Mueller, the president has renewed his push for such an interview.

Trump has previously said that he would be willing to sit down with Mueller, but has added that he will defer to his lawyers’ advice.

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The Times also reported that Mueller has told Trump’s legal team he would now be willing to accept some of the president’s answers to questions in writing.

The topics Mueller wants to question Trump on — possible obstruction of justice and possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia — have reportedly remained the same.

“We’re in the process of responding to their proposal,” Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani told reporters on Wednesday.

The special counsel’s office declined to comment to the Times.

Questions over whether Trump would interview with Mueller have lingered for months. The special counsel reportedly told Trump’s attorneys that he would subpoena the president to testify before a grand jury if he did not agree to an interview.

Giuliani said in response that Trump would not have to comply with a subpoena — a claim that has faced some pushback.

Trump lashed out over Mueller’s probe in a series of tweets on Wednesday, calling for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to shut down the investigation.

Trump’s comments on Twitter came one day after the first trial in Mueller’s probe began. Former Trump campaign head Paul Manafort is facing bank and tax fraud charges, for which he has denied any wrongdoing.