Chairman Jerry Nadler says Robert Mueller will not testify next week

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee says special counsel Robert Mueller won’t appear before his panel next week, despite the committee’s hope that Mueller would testify May 15.

New York Rep. Jerry Nadler said Friday that negotiations continue with Mueller and the Justice Department about the testimony. He wouldn’t characterize those talks.

Nadler said he expects Mueller to appear, and if he won’t agree the committee will attempt to compel him.

Nadler has said that the committee would subpoena Mueller if necessary, but expressed hope that such a step could be avoided.

Nadler's comments came two days after his committee -- the panel empowered to initiate impeachment proceedings against a president -- voted along party lines to recommend that Attorney General William Barr be held in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over the unredacted Mueller report and its underlying evidence.

Mueller has said that Barr, in his own four-page summary of the report mischaracterized the nature and the substance of the investigation conclusions, which resulted in "public confusion" about the findings.

That dispute, and Barr's refusal to provide the special counsel's full report has intensified congressional interest in hearing from Mueller himself.

Barr has said he does not object to Mueller testifying to lawmakers.

President Donald Trump, whose campaign was accused by Democrats of colluding with Moscow, has flip-flopped on the issue.

He has gone from saying he would not object to Mueller testifying, to tweeting on Sunday that "Bob Mueller should not testify."

He reversed himself again Thursday, saying "I'm going to leave that up to our very great attorney general, and he'll make the decision on that."