The Justice Department has confirmed a report that President Donald Trump spoke with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and asked him for help investigating the origin of former special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. The president reached out to Morrison at the request of Attorney General William Barr.
"As the Department of Justice has previously announced, a team led by U.S. Attorney John Durham is investigating the origins of the U.S. counterintelligence probe of the Trump 2016 presidential campaign," spokesperson Keri Kupec said in a statement. "Mr. Durham is gathering information from numerous sources, including a number of foreign countries. At Attorney General Barr's request, the President has contacted other countries to ask them to introduce the Attorney General and Mr. Durham to appropriate officials."
The Australian government also confirmed the conversation, which took place prior to Morrison's trip to the United States to attend the United Nations General Assembly, and said that Morrison agreed to help with the investigation.
"The Australian Government has always been ready to assist and cooperate with efforts that help shed further light on the matters under investigation," the spokesman said. "The PM confirmed this readiness once again in conversation with the President."
The revelation comes amid an impeachment inquiry into President Trump, which alleges that Trump asked the Ukrainian president to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Democrats claim the President used $400 million in foreign aid as leverage to get Ukrainian officials to dig up dirt on his potential rival in the 2020 presidential election.
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