Washington — Attorney General William P. Barr’s release of the redacted Mueller report did nothing to tamp down demands from congressional Democrats that the entire document and underlying information be made available to Congress and the public.

Top Democrats on Thursday demanded that special counsel Robert S. Mueller III testify before Congress within a month, arguing that Barr cannot be trusted to interpret the report and is trying to protect the president who appointed him.

Barr said during a news conference Thursday morning he would soon make available a less-redacted version of the report to a small, bipartisan group of lawmakers. But he added that confidential material collected by a grand jury would still not be shared with Congress, a key point of contention with Democrats who argue Congress has a right to view it.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., requested that Mueller testify before his committee by May 23. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., also wants to hear from him. Barr said Thursday he had no objection to Mueller testifying.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said Barr’s “slanted March 24th summary letter, his irresponsible testimony before Congress” and the fact that he held a news conference before the report was released “have resulted in a crisis of confidence in his independence and impartiality.”

“Attorney General Barr is supposed to be the nation’s top impartial lawyer, not a White House spokesman,” said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. “His press conference was just an attempt to spin.”

Republicans in Congress rallied around Barr’s characterization that the investigation found no evidence that Trump or his campaign colluded with the Russians or that the president obstructed justice in the course of the investigation.

“Democrats want to keep searching for imaginary evidence that supports their claims, but it is simply not there,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. “It is time to move on.”

The coming battle to obtain the full report — the House Judiciary Committee has approved but not sent a subpoena for the report — threatens to consume Washington for months.

Several Democratic 2020 presidential candidates joined in criticism of Barr.

“Barr is acting more like Trump’s defense attorney than the nation’s attorney general,” said Sen. Kamala Harris of California on Twitter.

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar echoed the calls for Mueller to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which includes three Democratic presidential contenders: Klobuchar, Harris and Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey.

Barr said Thursday the law prevented him from releasing information obtained in a grand jury investigation. Democrats want Barr to make a joint request to a federal judge to allow the release of the information, but they’ve indicated they are prepared to make the request on their own if needed.

Barr said his offer to share a less-redacted version of the report with select lawmakers — as well as his testimony before Congress, slated for May 1 and May 2 — should be enough for Congress to conduct its oversight.

“I believe that this accommodation together with my upcoming testimony before the Senate and House judiciary committees will satisfy any need Congress has for information regarding the special counsel’s investigation,” Barr said.

The fuller version of the report will be shared with the top Republicans and Democrats on the House and Senate judiciary committees — including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. It will also go to the so-called “gang of eight” — the top two Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate, including Pelosi and McCarthy.

Los Angeles Times Staff Writers Sarah D. Wire and Janet Hook contributed to this report.