The GOP-led House Oversight Committee has officially withdrawn its request for former special counsel Robert Mueller to testify before the panel, a committee spokesperson told ABC News.
“We’ve learned that Mr. Mueller has health issues that preclude him from being able to testify,” the spokesperson said.
Then-FBI Director Robert Mueller speaks during a news conference at the FBI headquarters June 25, 2008, in Washington, D.C. The news conference was to mark the 5th anniversary of Innocence Lost initiative. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Chairman James Comer subpoenaed Mueller to appear on Tuesday, Sept. 2, as part of the committee’s broad investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Mueller served as Federal Bureau of Investigation director from 2001 to 2013.
“Because you were F.B.I. director during the time when Mr. Epstein was under investigation by the F.B.I., the committee believes that you possess knowledge and information relevant to its investigation,” Comer wrote in a letter sent to Mueller on Aug. 5.
Mueller’s family told The New York Times that he has been battling Parkinson’s disease, prohibiting him from coming before Congress.
“Bob was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in the summer of 2021,” the family said in a statement to The New York Times. “He retired from the practice of law at the end of that year. He taught at his law school alma mater during the fall of both 2021 and 2022, and he retired at the end of 2022. His family asks that his privacy be respected.”
