Politics

Special counsel Robert Mueller accuses opponents of offering women money to make 'false claims' about him

Key Points
  • Special counsel Robert Mueller has referred to the FBI allegations that women were "offered money" to make "false claims" about him, a spokesman said Tuesday.
  • "When we learned last week of allegations that women were offered money to make false claims about the Special Counsel, we immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation," spokesman Peter Carr says.
  • Mueller is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible coordination between the Kremlin and Trump's campaign.
Robert Mueller accuses opponents of offering women money to make ‘false claims’ about him
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Robert Mueller accuses opponents of offering women money to make ‘false claims’ about him

Special counsel Robert Mueller has referred to the FBI allegations that women were "offered money" to make "false claims" about him, a spokesman said Tuesday.

Spokesman Peter Carr released this statement to CNBC:

When we learned last week of allegations that women were offered money to make false claims about the Special Counsel, we immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation.

Mueller is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as possible coordination between the Kremlin and President Donald Trump's campaign.

Mueller focuses on links between Roger Stone and Trump campaign aide Rick Gates
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Mueller focuses on links between Roger Stone and Trump campaign aide Rick Gates

Jack Burkman, a conservative commentator who claims to be a registered lobbyist, said in a tweet Tuesday that "we will reveal the first of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's sex assault victims" on Thursday.

Burkman tweet

Burkman has frequently called on Trump to fire Mueller, along with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees the special counsel, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had recused himself from interfering in the probe.

He even offered a $25,000 reward to any whistleblower who could offer concrete evidence of FBI wrongdoing in those investigations, The Washington Times reported in February.

The special counsel's office confirmed to CNBC that it learned about the "scheme" from journalists who had been approached by a woman alleging that she had been offered $20,000 by Burkman "to make accusations of sexual misconduct and workplace harassment against Robert Mueller."

Watch: Robert Mueller's investigation could turn a profit for taxpayers

Mueller's investigation could make money for the government, thanks to Manafort
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Mueller's investigation could make money for the government

Burkman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a Facebook video also posted Tuesday, Burkman claimed "we will unveil the first of the sex assault victims of Robert Mueller." In the video, Burkman said the "first" alleged accuser is "coming out this Thursday at high noon."

He added: "Robert Mueller is a bad guy not just because of what he does inside the courtroom, but because of what he does outside the courtroom."

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores referred inquiries back to the special counsel. The FBI declined to comment on Carr's statement.

The statement from the special counsel, which rarely comments on matters related to its ongoing investigation or Mueller in particular, comes just one week before the November midterm elections. Most generic ballot polls forecast Democrats re-taking majority control of the House of Representatives.

Burkman garnered attention as a right-wing provocateur in 2014, when he drafted a proposal that would ban gay men from playing in the National Football League.

--CNBC's Dan Mangan and Brian Schwartz contributed to this report.