(ABC News)
Jonathan Karl Mar 21, 2019 5:12 PM
There's no shortage of speculation on the special counsel Robert Mueller’s report, much of it totally uninformed.
But we don't need to speculate on the scope – the man who appointed Mueller has already given us a potential road map on what to expect from the special counsel.
The bottom line: Do not expect a harsh condemnation of President Donald Trump or any of his associates if they have not been charged with crimes.
The road map comes in the form a little-noticed 12-page letter written by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein last June to Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley.
The letter was in response to Grassley's demands for more information on the special counsel investigation, offers a brief history of special counsel investigations and actually quotes former and future Attorney General William Barr who appointed three special counsels during his time as attorney general under President George H.W. Bush.
In the letter, Rosenstein makes it clear he believes the Department of Justice will not – and cannot without violating long-standing Department of Justice policy – include disparaging or incriminating information about anybody who has not been charged with a crime.
"Punishing wrongdoers through judicial proceedings is only one part of the Department's mission," Rosenstein wrote. "We also have a duty to prevent the disclosure of information that would unfairly tarnish people who are not charged with crimes."
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