Washington – Democrats in Minnesota's congressional delegation say the Justice Department must release special counsel Robert Mueller's full report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, while Republicans argue it's time to move on after the report found no evidence of collusion between President Donald Trump's campaign and Russia.
"Not being indicted for conspiring with a foreign adversary is hardly a victory for Mr. Trump and Republicans," U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum, a St. Paul Democrat, tweeted Monday morning.
Like other Democrats, McCollum said she wants more information. On Sunday, Attorney General William Barr issued a four-page summary of the Mueller report to Congress, outlining that Mueller found no evidence that the Trump campaign "conspired or coordinated" with Russia to influence the '16 election. It reached no conclusion on whether Trump obstructed justice.
"Americans should never have to question the loyalty of our president," McCollum tweeted. "We do know obstruction of justice is a crime President Donald Trump may have committed and Congress must investigate the facts gathered by the Mueller investigation."
'No collusion'
Rep. Jim Hagedorn from southern Minnesota echoed many fellow Republicans in arguing that Congress should now turn to other issues like expanding the U.S. economy, a new Canada-Mexico free trade agreement, a transportation and infrastructure bill and border security.
"There was no collusion!" Hagedorn said in a statement. "Over the last two years, this effort tried to discredit and undermine the Trump presidency. It was a shameful waste of tax dollars and it's time to move forward for the good of the American people."
Minnesota U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a candidate for president, also called for the full report's release.
"It's time to make the entire report public. That's justice worthy of this building," Klobuchar said in a brief video clip posted to Twitter on Sunday as she stood in front of Justice Department headquarters in Washington. In a subsequent tweet, Klobuchar said Congress and the American people need to know the report's full findings on Russian efforts to sway the election.
Most of the other Democrats in Minnesota's delegation also called for a full public release of the report. "A summary is not enough," Sen. Tina Smith posted on Twitter. Rep. Angie Craig echoed that in her own tweet.
'Significant questions'
Rep. Dean Phillips wrote on Twitter that "I am pleased that the report did not establish collaboration between the Trump campaign and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's efforts." But he said he remains concerned over questions about possible obstruction of justice by President Donald Trump.
"We are left with significant questions that must be answered," Phillips tweeted.
Klobuchar, campaigning in New Hampshire on Saturday, got no questions about the report in a question-and-answer session with Democratic primary voters, according to a Boston Globe report.
Klobuchar later told reporters she was surprised by that, and that she did try to broach the subject following a question about constitutional separation of powers.
Though fallout from the report quickly fell along predictable partisan lines, Republican Rep. Pete Stauber of northern Minnesota said in a statement that he hopes the report ends the partisan warfare over the 2016 election.
"I am pleased that the Mueller investigation has finally come to a close and believe it is time move forward, together, as a nation," Stauber said in a statement. "As Americans, we live in the greatest nation on earth, but we are tired of the political games."
Patrick Condon • 202-662-7452
