Trump / Mueller update late November 2018….

President Trump delivered to Robert Mueller handwritten answers about pre-election dimensions of the Russia probe but did not answer questions about his behavior as president, including allegations of obstruction of justice — and will resist doing so in the future — histells Axios.

The big picture: It is possible that Mueller will subpoena Trump regarding his activities as president. But Rudy said he has reason to suspect he won’t: “I think that he would not win a legal battle if he did that, and I think it would consume months.” If Mueller does, the president’s view is clear: He will refuse to cooperate.

The high-stakes exchange with Mueller included no questions or answers about obstruction of justice. But Giuliani said: “I can’t tell you he’s given up on obstruction.”

• “I don’t think he has any way to compel testimony on obstruction because the argument of executive privilege would be very, very strong. It all relates to a period of time after he was president.”
• “[A]ny question he has on obstruction, … [t]he president has given [the answers] in interviews, tweets. Other witnesses have given it to him.”
• “And the law definitely requires that if you’re going to subpoena a president, you have to show that you can’t get the information any place else.”

Giuliani expressed breezy confidence about Trump’s legal position: “I don’t think they have any evidence of collusion of any kind. I think their obstruction case, as a legal matter, doesn’t exist.”And Giuliani suggested that he doubts Don Jr. will be indicted in connection with the Trump Tower meeting.

• “I don’t see what for,” Giuliani said. “The meeting turned out to be a big bust. … It’s a very unattractive crime [for a prosecutor] when somebody meets with you and then you don’t do anything.”

If Donald Trump were an “ordinary client,” it would’ve taken “four, five, six hours” and two meetings to answer Mueller’s questions, Giuliani told me. But the process dragged out for almost a year…..

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image…CNN.Com