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'Grossly insufficient': Oregon lawmakers respond to AG Barr's summary of Mueller report

The state's two Senators and three of its five members of Congress called for the release of the Mueller report and many questioned Barr's objectivity as a Trump appointee.

PORTLAND, Ore. — In a four-page letter to members of Congress, Attorney General William Barr said Sunday that special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation did not find evidence that President Donald Trump's campaign "conspired or coordinated" with Russia to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Barr also said in the letter that Mueller investigated whether Trump obstructed justice but didn't come to a definitive answer.

After consulting with other department officials, Barr also said in the letter that he and his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, determined the evidence "is not sufficient to establish that the president committed an obstruction of justice offense."

Oregon lawmakers say they aren't settled on that question yet. The state's two Senators and four of its five members of Congress called for the release of the Mueller report and many questioned Barr's objectivity as a Trump appointee.

Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat, called for the report to be made public.

"Barr made it clear before he was nominated that he didn't think Trump committed obstruction of justice. That's why Trump made him AG," Wyden tweeted. "If Mueller did present arguments and evidence for why the President of the United States obstructed justice, they need to be made public. Now."

Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, questioned Barr's objectivity, called his letter "grossly insufficient" and demanded accountability and action for Russia's interference in the 2016 election.

Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, a Democrat who represents Oregon's 1st District, said "the public deserves to see" Mueller's full report, and vowed that the U.S. House of Representatives will continue to "independently investigate these issues and their repercussions on our democracy."

Congressman Greg Walden, a Republican who represents Oregon's 2nd District, praised Mueller, said it's "clear that President Trump and his campaign did not collude with the Russians," and called on the president's critics to accept Mueller's findings.

Congressman Earl Blumenauer, a Democrat who represents Oregon's 3rd District, tweeted that a four-page letter isn't sufficient and asked for the release of the full report.

Congressman Peter DeFazio, a Democrat who represents Oregon's 4th District, didn't respond on Sunday, but on Friday tweeted that "Americans deserve to read [Mueller's] findings and judge for themselves."

Congressman Kurt Schrader, a Democrat who represents Oregon's 5th District, did not respond on social media to the report.

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