In a rare statement from the office of special counsel Robert Mueller, he issued a devastating blow to a report from Buzzfeed that many were hoping would lead to indictment and eventual impeachment of the president.
Mueller said that the report was inaccurate, ending the debate over whether the blockbuster report would damage President Donald Trump.
"Buzzfeed's description of specific statements to the Special Counsel's Office, and characterization of documents and testimony obtained by this office, regarding Michael Cohen's Congressional testimony are not accurate," the short statement read.
The Buzzfeed report had claimed Thursday that the president's former lawyer Michael Cohen testified that he had been ordered by Trump to lie to Congress.
Critics of the president defended the report and began speculating as to whether the president could be indicted while in office of the charges, and how soon Democrats could start impeachment proceedings.
"I cannot remember a statement like that coming from Mueller's office about any news report, pro or con, in the history of the special counsel's office," said NBC's Ken Dilanian.
Dilanian added on his social media account that the statement wasn't a blanket denial of the entire report.
"To be clear: Mueller is not disputing that Cohen says Trump told him to lie. He's disputing the line about corroborating evidence taken from Trump Org emails, texts, etc.
To be clear: Mueller is not disputing that Cohen says Trump told him to lie. He's disputing the line about corroborating evidence taken from Trump Org emails, texts, etc. Still a huge deal. But not a total refutation. In fact, Cohen's 11/30 memo says Trump directed him to lie.
— Ken Dilanian (@KenDilanianNBC) January 19, 2019
"Still a huge deal," Dilanian added. "But not a total refutation. In fact, Cohen's 11/30 memo says Trump directed him to lie."
Buzzfeed released a statement saying they were still confident in their report.
BREAKING: BuzzFeed News says "we are continuing to report and determine what the special counsel is disputing. We remain confident in the accuracy of our report."
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) January 19, 2019
The statement read, "we are continuing to report and determine what the special counsel is disputing. We remain confident in the accuracy of our report."