some on team say mueller findings, barr understated · 2019. 4. 4. · tors and countering other...

VOL. CLXVIII . . . No. 58,287 © 2019 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 2019

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WASHINGTON — Some ofRobert S. Mueller III’s investiga-tors have told associates that At-torney General William P. Barrfailed to adequately portray thefindings of their inquiry and thatthey were more troubling forPresident Trump than Mr. Barr in-dicated, according to governmentofficials and others familiar withtheir simmering frustrations.

At stake in the dispute — thefirst evidence of tension betweenMr. Barr and the special counsel’soffice — is who shapes the public’sinitial understanding of one of themost consequential governmentinvestigations in American his-tory. Some members of Mr. Muel-ler’s team are concerned that, be-cause Mr. Barr created the firstnarrative of the special counsel’sfindings, Americans’ views willhave hardened before the investi-gation’s conclusions become pub-lic.

Mr. Barr has said he will movequickly to release the nearly 400-page report but needs time toscrub out confidential informa-tion. The special counsel’s investi-gators had already written multi-ple summaries of the report, andsome team members believe thatMr. Barr should have includedmore of their material in the four-page letter he wrote on March 24laying out their main conclusions,according to government officialsfamiliar with the investigation.Mr. Barr only briefly cited the spe-cial counsel’s work in his letter.

However, the special counsel’soffice never asked Mr. Barr to re-lease the summaries soon after hereceived the report, a person fa-miliar with the investigation said.

And the Justice Departmentquickly determined that the sum-maries contain sensitive informa-tion, like classified material, se-cret grand-jury testimony and in-formation related to current fed-eral investigations that mustremain confidential, according totwo government officials.

Mr. Barr was also wary of de-parting from Justice Departmentpractice not to disclose deroga-tory details in closing an investi-gation, according to two govern-ment officials familiar with Mr.Barr’s thinking. They pointed tothe decision by James B. Comey,

the former F.B.I. director, toharshly criticize Hillary Clinton in2016 while announcing that hewas recommending no charges inthe inquiry into her email prac-tices.

The officials and others inter-viewed declined to flesh out whysome of the special counsel’s in-vestigators viewed their findingsas potentially more damaging forthe president than Mr. Barr ex-

BARR UNDERSTATED MUELLER FINDINGS,

SOME ON TEAM SAYInvestigators Call Report More Troubling

for President Than Was Portrayed

This article is by Nicholas Fandos,Michael S. Schmidt and MarkMazzetti.

Attorney General William P.Barr’s summary is in dispute.

T.J. KIRKPATRICK FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A14

The measles outbreak that ledto a state of emergency in NewYork’s Rockland County began faraway: in an annual Hasidic pil-grimage from Israel to Ukraine.

It is emblematic of a series offierce, sometimes connected mea-sles outbreaks — in places as di-verse as Indonesia, the Phil-ippines, Madagascar and Vene-zuela — that have shaken globalhealth officials, revealing persist-ent shortcomings in the world’svaccination efforts and threat-ening to tarnish what had been asignature public health achieve-ment.

In 2001, the United Nations de-clared war on measles. With helpfrom the federal government, theAmerican Red Cross and big do-nors like Ted Turner and Bill andMelinda Gates, the U.N. began theMeasles and Rubella Initiativeand created Gavi, the Vaccine Alli-ance.

Together, they poured billions ofdollars into buying vaccines andhelping countries deliver it safely,which meant building refrigerat-ed storage facilities, supplyingclean needles, training vaccina-tors and countering other logisti-cal obstacles common in poorcountries.

Public health officials world-wide tracked the results, monitor-ing cases and tracking outbreaks.The news was good: Measles de-clined worldwide by nearly 80percent between 2000 and 2016,with fatalities — mostly amongchildren younger than age 5 —plummeting to about 90,000 peryear from about 550,000.

But two years ago, measlescases unexpectedly popped up-ward again, rising 30 percent in asingle year. The virus re-invadedcountries where it had been van-quished.

The biggest factor in that in-crease, World Health Organiza-tion officials said, was poverty:Medical systems in many coun-tries remain too weak to vaccinateenough children year after year towall out the virus.

To stop imported cases fromspreading, about 95 percent of acountry’s citizens must be im-mune, either through vaccinationor because they had measles aschildren. As babies are born, newpools of potential victims are cre-ated — unless vaccination is con-stant.

Once Tamed,Measles Rears

Its Ugly Head

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Children with measles in a government hospital in Manila in February. The Philippines presents a tricky vaccination challenge.FRANCIS R MALASIG/EPA, VIA SHUTTERSTOCK

Continued on Page A8

WASHINGTON — The arrestof a Chinese woman who carried amalware-laced device into Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s Floridaresort, has exposed porous securi-ty at the private club and escalat-ing tensions between Secret Serv-ice agents and the resort’s staffmembers, who vet guest lists andallow people onto the sprawlinggrounds.

At times neither side has hadfull clarity on who was enteringMar-a-Lago. Secret Serviceagents must rely on club recep-tionists and other employees tocrosscheck visitors, former offi-cials said.

Communication breakdowns al-

low for security breaches — likethe one on Saturday, when thewoman, Yujing Zhang, 32, was ar-rested with four cellphones, ahard drive, a laptop and a mal-ware-infected thumb drive. Shesaid she was there to attend a“United Nations FriendshipEvent” that had never beenscheduled.

Her arrest revealed gaps in Mr.Trump’s security as well as thechallenge of protecting a presi-dent who spends less time at theremote, fortified Camp David and

more time at his busy resort withsometimes hundreds of guests.The normally tight-lipped SecretService was so disturbed by thebreach that it issued an unusualstatement that effectively blamedthe Mar-a-Lago staff for nottightly tracking the comings andgoings of guests.

“The Secret Service does notdetermine who is invited or wel-come at Mar-a-Lago; this is the re-sponsibility of the host entity,” theagency said in a statement lateTuesday. “The Mar-a-Lago clubmanagement determines whichmembers and guests are grantedaccess to the property.”

The arrest of Ms. Zhang cameagainst a backdrop of increasinginterest in Mar-a-Lago in China,where advertisements on the in-ternet and on social media sell in-

Malware Arrest Bares a Vulnerable Mar-a-LagoThis article is by Zolan Kanno-

Youngs, Katie Rogers and Alexan-dra Stevenson.

Gaps in Security for a President Who Favors

His Private Resort

Continued on Page A15

One prisoner had been dead forso long that when he was discov-ered lying face down, his face wasflattened. Another was tied up andtortured for two days while no onenoticed. Bloody inmatesscreamed for help from cellswhose doors did not lock.

Those were some of the grue-some details in a 56-page reporton the Alabama prison system

that was issued by the Justice De-partment on Wednesday. The re-port, one of the first major civilrights investigations by the de-partment to be released underPresident Trump, uncoveredshocking conditions in the state’smassively overcrowded and un-

derstaffed facilities.Prisoners in the Alabama sys-

tem endured some of the highestrates of homicide and rape in thecountry, the Justice Departmentfound, and officials showed a “fla-grant disregard” for their right tobe free from excessive and cruelpunishment. The investigation be-gan in the waning days of theObama administration and con-tinued for more than two years af-ter Mr. Trump took office.

The department notified the

‘Common, Cruel’ Violence Met by IndifferenceBy KATIE BENNER

and SHAILA DEWAN

St. Clair Correctional Facility in Alabama. Inmates in the state continue to die in high numbers.WILLIAM WIDMER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Grisly Details in Reporton Alabama Prisons

Continued on Page A17

For five days, Joseph R. BidenJr. remained in the background asfour women came forward sayingthey had been uncomfortable withthe ways he had touched them. Heput out three statements througha spokesman, but none of themwas his own account or an ac-knowledgment of the discomforthe had caused.

On Wednesday, Mr. Biden de-cided he needed to address thematter — and his future as a possi-ble presidential candidate — per-sonally. Yet his approach was un-usual: He released a seeminglyhomemade video, laying out hisviews on connecting with votersemotionally and even physically,and vowing to “be more mindfuland respectful of people’s person-al space.”

“In my career, I’ve always triedto make a human connection —that’s my responsibility, I think,”said Mr. Biden, sitting on a sofa,his legs crossed. “I shake hands, Ihug people, I grab men and wom-en by the shoulders and say, ‘Youcan do this.’”

But he added: “Social normshave begun to change, they’veshifted, and the boundaries of pro-tecting personal space have beenreset and I get it. I get it. I hearwhat they’re saying.”

‘I Get It’: BidenPledges RespectFor Boundaries

By SYDNEY EMBERand JONATHAN MARTIN

Continued on Page A12

On Election Day in 2016, the Re-publican Party was dividedagainst itself, split over its nomi-nee for president, Donald J.Trump.

In Ohio, a crucial battleground,the state party chairman had re-peatedly chided Mr. Trump in pub-lic, amplifying the concerns ofGov. John Kasich, a Republicandissenter. In New Hampshire, theparty chairman harbored deep, iflargely private, misgivings abouther party’s nominee. The Republi-can Party of Florida was listing,hobbled by local feuds and a riftbetween donors loyal to SenatorMarco Rubio and former Gov. JebBush and those backing the manwho humiliated both in the prima-ries.

Those power struggles havenow been resolved in a one-sidedfashion. In every state importantto the 2020 race, Mr. Trump andhis lieutenants are in firm controlof the Republican electoral ma-chinery, and they are taking stepsto extend and tighten their grip.

It is, in every institutionalsense, Mr. Trump’s party.

As Mr. Trump has prepared toembark on a difficult fight for re-election, a small but ferocious op-eration within his campaign hashelped install loyal allies atop themost significant state parties and

As 2020 Nears,Trump Tightens

Hold on G.O.P.By ALEXANDER BURNSand JONATHAN MARTIN

Continued on Page A13

Before their day in court, some parentscharged in a college admissions scandalare facing punishments. PAGE A12

NATIONAL A11-18

Jobs Vanish in Scandal FalloutKatrina Lenk, who has starred in themusical from the start, looks back on itsruns Off Broadway, and on. PAGE C1

ARTS C1-8

After ‘The Band’s Visit’

A crackdown on soap operas is thelatest extension of an authoritarianismthat is unusual even for a country longgoverned by strongmen. PAGE A6

INTERNATIONAL A4-10

Egypt Turns Iron Grip to TVAs a tight labor market raises costs,employers say the need for low-wagehelp in building and other fields can’t bemet without immigrants. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-7

Help Wanted From ImmigrantsMaureen Dowd visits Sam Rockwell,who is trying to stay lean to portray thechoreographer Bob Fosse. PAGE D1

THURSDAY STYLES D1-8

Dancing Into Another Role

J. B. Pritzker, the governor of Illinois,gets daily dress code recommendations,and he’s not alone. PAGE D2

Fashion Is on His Agenda

Gail Collins PAGE A23

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A22-23

Lori Lightfoot, the mayor-elect, says shehas a “broad mandate for change.” Thatdoesn’t come easy in Chicago. PAGE A18

Next Job: Remaking ChicagoThe creative team behind the TVthriller shares the inspirations for themany moods of the show. PAGE C1

The Origins of ‘Killing Eve’

Cross-party Brexit talks began betweenJeremy Corbyn of the opposition andPrime Minister Theresa May. PAGE A7

Focus Shifts to Labour LeaderIn buying the ad agency Droga5, Accen-ture looks for creative muscle not asso-ciated with consulting firms. PAGE B1

Making a Bet on Creativity

Taking a Trump cue, a Republican fromLong Island has blocked people fromhis Facebook page. PAGE A20

NEW YORK A19-21

Unfriendly Views UnwelcomeA history professor includes his ownschool’s scandal on the syllabus of hiscourse on college athletics. PAGE B8

SPORTSTHURSDAY B8-11

U.N.C.’s Teachable Moment

TAX RETURN FIGHT The chairman of a House panel asked that theI.R.S. hand over six years of President Trump’s tax returns. PAGE A14

Late EditionToday, periodic clouds and sunshine,high 59. Tonight, plenty of clouds,low 38. Tomorrow, periodic rainfrom late morning on, chillier, high45. Weather map is on Page B14.

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