WASHINGTON William Barr , President Donald Trump s nominee for attorney general, raised doubts on Tuesday that he would release to the public the complete final report by the special counsel team led by Robert Mueller .

Barr, seeking to reassure members of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday about his ability to oversee the probe into Russian efforts to skew the 2016 presidential election, called Mueller a straight shooter and said he didnt believe the special counsel was overseeing a witch hunt as Trump has repeatedly branded the investigation.

But Barr, testifying at his confirmation hearing, said that under his interpretation of the special counsel regulations, he didnt believe that Muellers final report was required to be made public. Barr said he believed Muellers report would be confidential, but that as attorney general he would issue a public summary of its findings.

Barr also said he believed that the attorney general had some flexibility and discretion about what he could disclose to the public after the Mueller investigation concluded.