Page:Report On The Investigation Into Russian Interference In The 2016 Presidential Election.pdf/328

U.S. Department of Justice

Attorney Work Product // May Contain Material Protected Under Fed. R. Crim. P. 6(e)

saying something to the effect of, "If he doesn't write a letter, then maybe I'll have to get rid of him.^[1]

Later that day, Porter spoke to McGahn to deliver the President's message.^[2] Porter told McGahn that he had to write a letter to dispute that he was ever ordered to terminate the Special Counsel.^[3] McGahn shrugged off the request, explaining that the media reports were true.^[4] McGahn told Porter that the President had been insistent on firing the Special Counsel and that McGahn had planned to resign rather than carry out the order, although he had not personally told the President he intended to quit.^[5] Porter told McGahn that the President suggested that McGahn would be fired if he did not write the letter.^[6] McGahn dismissed the threat, saying that the optics would be terrible if the President followed through with firing him on that basis. McGahn said he would not write the letter the President had requested.^[7] Porter said that to his knowledge the issue of McGahn's letter never came up with the President again, but Porter did recall telling Kelly about his conversation with McGahn.^[8]

The next day, on February 6, 2018, Kelly scheduled time for McGahn to meet with him and the President in the Oval Office to discuss the Times article.^[9] The morning of the meeting, the President's personal counsel called McGahn's attorney and said that the President was going to be speaking with McGahn and McGahn could not resign no matter what happened in the meeting.^[10]

The President began the Oval Office meeting by telling McGahn that the New York Times story did not "look good" and McGahn needed to correct it.^[11] MecGahn recalled the President said, "I never said to fire Mueller. I never said 'fire. This story doesn't look good. You need to correct this. You're the White House counsel."^[12]

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1. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17.
2. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
3. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4. 83 Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
4. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
5. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
6. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 17-18; McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
7. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
8. Porter 4/13/18 302, at 18.
9. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4; WH000017685 (Kelly 2/6/18 Notes). McGahn recalled that, before the Oval Office meeting, he told Kelly that he was not inclined to fix the article. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4.
10. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 5 (agent note); 2/26/19 Email, Counsel for Don McGahn to Special Counsel's Office (confirming February 6, 2018 date of call from the President's personal counsel).
11. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4; Kelly 8/2/18 302, at 2.
12. McGahn 3/8/18 302, at 4; Kelly 8/2/18 302, at 2.

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