Politics

Special counsel Robert Mueller's report is more than 300 pages long; Pelosi says AG Barr's decision to summarize is 'condescending,' 'arrogant'

Key Points
  • Special counsel Robert Mueller's final report, which has yet to be made public, is more than 300 pages long, NBC News has learned.
  • Mueller's report was submitted to Attorney General William Barr last week.
  • The report details Mueller's findings from a two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, possible coordination by the campaign of President Donald Trump in that meddling, and possible obstruction of justice by Trump himself.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
Joshua Roberts | Reuters

Special counsel Robert Mueller's final report, which has yet to be made public after being submitted to Attorney General William Barr last Friday, is more than 300 pages long, a Justice Department official told NBC News.

On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Barr's decision to summarize the report's findings in a four-page letter to Congress on Sunday was "condescending" and "arrogant."

Pelosi said Barr had effectively auditioned for the post of attorney general by writing a memo to the Justice Department last year criticizing Mueller's investigation, when it was well-known that President Donald Trump opposed the inquiry.

House Intel Committee Chair Adam Schiff responds to Republican calls for his resignation
VIDEO4:4504:45
House Intel Committee Chair Adam Schiff responds to Republican calls for his resignation

"Mr. Attorney General, we don't need your interpretation," of the Mueller report, said Pelosi, D-Calif.

The speaker echoed calls by other leading Democrats for the report to be given to Congress soon.

The report details Mueller's findings from a two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, possible coordination by the campaign of Trump in that meddling, and possible obstruction of justice by the president.

Mueller found no evidence of collusion by the Trump campaign, Barr told Congress in his brief letter.

The special counsel did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump obstructed justice. But Barr in his letter said that he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein had concluded that the probe did not find sufficient evidence to establish that the president had obstructed justice.

Trump, who long had argued that Mueller's investigation was a "witch hunt," this week has claimed that the special counsel's report fully exonerated him.

But in fact, Mueller wrote that "while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him," according to Barr's letter summarizing the special counsel's key findings.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., on Wednesday said Barr had told him that an April 2 deadline set by Democrats for turning over the report to Congress was not going to be met, but also told him that a fuller report would be submitted "in weeks, not months."

Justice Department officials have told NBC News that it will take some time to remove classified information from the report before it can be turned over.

Democrats are considering whether to issue a subpoena to Mueller himself if they do not receive the full report.

The Justice Department had no immediate comment on Pelosi's remarks about Barr.

WATCH: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) says entire Mueller report should be released

Ted Cruz: The entire Mueller report should be released to the public
VIDEO1:3801:38
Ted Cruz: The entire Mueller report should be released to the public