White House lawyer Don McGahn: 5 things to know about his cooperation with Russia probe

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump on Sunday slammed a report that he was not fully aware of the extent of White House counsel Don McGahn's cooperation with the special counsel's investigation.

In several tweets, Trump complained about a New York Times story that reported McGahn opened up to special counsel Robert Mueller in a series of interviews that lasted 30 hours. And the president compared the special counsel probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election to McCarthyism.

The Times' report says McGahn's legal strategy of full cooperation with the Mueller probe was motivated by McGahn's concern that Trump was setting him up to take responsibility for any possible obstruction of justice actions.

"The Failing New York Times wrote a story that made it seems like the White House Councel had TURNED on the President, when in fact it is just the opposite," Trump wrote Sunday morning.

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
The Failing New York Times wrote a story that made it seem like the White House Councel had TURNED on the President, when in fact it is just the opposite - & the two Fake reporters knew this. This is why the Fake News Media has become the Enemy of the People. So bad for America!

7:06 PM - Aug 19, 2018
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In a tweet Sunday morning, The New York Times said it stood behind its reporting.

Here's a look at why McGahn's interviews with the special counsel are getting so much attention from the public and the president:

A key player
As White House counsel, McGahn has had extraordinary access to the president and some of his most controversial moves.

McGahn reportedly has told investigators what he knew about the president's role in the firing of former FBI director James Comey, Trump's repeated criticism of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his role in the Russia investigation before the president hired outside counsel to deal with the matter, The Times reported, citing a dozen anonymous sources.

McGahn's testimony likely would be central to any obstruction of justice charge brought by Mueller.

Privilege waived
Trump could have invoked attorney-client and executive privilege to prevent McGahn from talking with investigators who are examining possible obstruction of justice by the president.

The president waived those privileges. Trump and the outside lawyers initially representing him in the inquiry hoped that transparency would help to quickly put an end to an inquiry that began more than two years ago.

In tweets over the weekend, Trump emphasized that he granted McGahn permission to talk with Mueller and his investigators.

"I allowed White House Counsel Don McGahn, and all other requested members of the White House Staff, to fully cooperate with the Special Counsel," Trump tweeted Saturday. "In addition we readily gave over one million pages of documents. Most transparent in history."

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
I allowed White House Counsel Don McGahn, and all other requested members of the White House Staff, to fully cooperate with the Special Counsel. In addition we readily gave over one million pages of documents. Most transparent in history. No Collusion, No Obstruction. Witch Hunt!

5:12 AM - Aug 19, 2018
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Too much cooperation?
On Sunday, Trump reacted angrily to indications that he was not fully aware of how much McGahn has shared with Mueller's team.

TheTimes reported that McGahn and his lawyer were surprised by Trump's decision to allow him to talk with the special counsel and worried it was a trick designed to set up McGahn to take the blame for any possible obstruction charges. So, McGahn and his attorney William Burck came up with their own strategy to cooperate fully and prove McGahn engaged in no wrongdoing, the Timessaid.

"It is not clear that Mr. Trump appreciates the extent to which Mr. McGahn has cooperated with the special counsel," Times reporters added.

Trump has reacted angrily to that assertion. McGahn, he said, isn't a "John Dean type 'RAT,' " the president tweeted, in a reference to the White House attorney who turned on President Richard Nixon in the Watergate scandal.

"I have nothing to hide," he added.

Trump's lead outside attorney, Rudy Giuliani, on Sunday said McGahn's interviews with Mueller won't harm Trump. "We are confident that he said nothing wrong about the president," Giuliani said on Fox News.

But Giuliani also seemed to indicate that he was relying on secondhand information, from Trump’s former personal attorney John Dowd, to determine the extent of what McGahn had shared with Mueller’s team.

“Through John Dowd we have a pretty good sense of it,” Giuliani said on NBC’s Meet the Press, when asked how much he knew about the content of McGahn’s interviews with investigators.

“John Dowd yesterday said, I’ll use his words rather than mine, that ‘McGahn was a strong witness for the president,’ so I don’t need to know much more about that," Giuliani added.

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
The failing @nytimes wrote a Fake piece today implying that because White House Councel Don McGahn was giving hours of testimony to the Special Councel, he must be a John Dean type “RAT.” But I allowed him and all others to testify - I didn’t have to. I have nothing to hide......

6:01 PM - Aug 19, 2018
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McGahn's response
In a statement to USA TODAY over the weekend, McGahn's attorney said his client answered the questions from Mueller's team both "fulsomely and honestly" and added Trump declined to claim attorney-client privilege.

"President Trump, through counsel, declined to assert any privilege over Mr. McGahn’s testimony, so Mr. McGahn answered the Special Counsel team’s questions fulsomely and honestly, as any person interviewed by federal investigators must," Burck said.
President Trump called New York Times report that he ordered special counsel Robert Mueller fired 'fake news.' The Times reports Trump ordered the firing last June but backed off when White House lawyer Don McGahn threatened to quit. (Jan. 26) AP

Ongoing saga
This isn't the first controversy to erupt between Trump and his top White House lawyer.

McGahn reportedly threatened to quit when Trump raised the possibility of firing Mueller last year, a month after Mueller had been named as special counsel. McGahn and others convinced Trump that firing Mueller would be a bad idea and eventually Trump pledged to work with the special counsel's office.