Trump Lashes Out At Mueller Ahead Of Congressional Hearings
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
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Trump Lashes Out At Mueller Ahead Of Congressional Hearings
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Sara Boboltz, HuffPost 1 hour 55 minutes ago President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked why former special counsel Robert Mueller didn’t “investigate the investigators,” shortly before members of Congress convened to press Mueller on his Russia investigation and its conclusions.
“So Democrats and others can illegally fabricate a crime, try pinning it on a very innocent President, and when he fights back against this illegal and treasonous attack on our Country, they call It Obstruction?” Trump wrote on Twitter.
He continued tweeting about Mueller , complaining about “his band of 18 Angry Democrats” and saying he was “wrongfully” appointed special counsel.
The president earlier complained that Mueller’s aide, Aaron Zebley, was being allowed to appear alongside Mueller at Wednesday’s hearing.
There is no evidence that Zebley is a “Never Trumper,” according to The Washington Post . He has no political donation history.
Mueller is set to face questions Wednesday from the House Judiciary Committee, led by Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), and the House Intelligence Committee, led by Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Democratic members of the committees are expected to grill Mueller on whether the president could or should be charged with attempting to obstruct justice.
Mueller and his team produced a 448-page report on their findings that was partially redacted and released to the public in April, about a month after it was completed.
Although Mueller’s conclusions were intensely anticipated, most Americans, “in their busy lives, haven’t had the opportunity to read the report,” Schiff said Sunday on “Face the Nation.”
“We want Bob Mueller to bring it to life, to talk about what’s in that report,” he said of the hearings, adding that the report contained a “pretty damning set of facts that involve a presidential campaign in a close race welcoming help from a hostile foreign power.”
On May 29, Mueller read a statement on the completed Russia investigation and said he intended it to be his first and last public comment.
“I hope and expect this to be the only time that I will speak about this matter,” he said outside the Justice Department at the time.
“The report is my testimony,” he added. “I would not provide information beyond that which is already public in any appearance before Congress.”
Weeks later, Mueller agreed to appear for questioning.
The special counsel’s two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and the Trump administration’s potential involvement wrapped up in March. His report pointedly stated that Trump had not been exonerated but was also not being charged with any crime due to his status as president.
“If we had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said that,” Mueller said in May. He also emphasized that charging a sitting president is considered unconstitutional.
“Charging the president with a crime was therefore not an option we could consider,” he stated.
Mueller alluded to impeachment by saying the Constitution “requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing.” But he was firm in his stance against commenting on “any other conclusions or hypotheticals about the president” beyond what is contained in the lengthy report.
Trump took Mueller’s statement to falsely suggest he had been exonerated, despite the special counsel’s repeated insistence to the contrary.
While the investigation did not conclude that anyone in the Trump campaign criminally conspired with Russian operatives to tip the election in Trump’s favor, Mueller outlined 10 instances in which Trump may have tried to obstruct justice as president.
This story has been updated with more of Trump’s comments.
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I actually feel sorry Mueller, it's uncomfortable to watch. He's doesn't appear to be in any condition mentally or physically to do this. IT's pretty obvious he was just a figurehead, while the actual investigation was run by the Clinton Bleach bit lawyer.
Sad to see.
They should stop this. There's no purpose to it and he's had a long tenure of public service. This is a sad way to exit the public stage.
The facts are being specifically confirmed by Mueller which indicate that Trump obstructed justice. Trump is an unindicted criminal. That is crystal clear.
The Democrats are reciting item after item that indicate obstruction of justice by Trump and Mueller is confirming all of them.
Impeachment is in order.
Because, you moronic piece of shit*, Mueller was hire to investigate you. I could explain it to you, but I ran out of crayons
*I'm talking to trmp
What this hearing is showing more than anything is that Trump should be impeached. Mueller cannot be expected to have every answer on the tip of his tongue and these things have to be examined publicly and deliberately in a much longer setting.
The fact is that they have already demonstrated that the report shows that Trump committed crimes.
Now they have to go to the next steps.
Stop it john. This is over. Mueller is now claiming facts within the report are outside his purview.
Nothing could discredit his report as much as his testimony has so far.
Honestly, I can't believe Democrats went through with this. You'd think their lawyers who actually ran the Mueller investigation would have warned them off.. The only thing they've done today is embarrass and humiliate Mueller.
The report strongly suggests that Trump committed the crime of obstruction of justice. Mueller has confirmed every single instance from the report.
Mueller has not disagreed with a single word the Democrats have said. To the contrary he has specifically affirmed everything the Democrats have said.
The Republicans are trying to make it a circus.
The Democrats should impeach Trump as the facts demand.
No rational person who's watched this depressing finale thinks impeachment is more likely then it was before Mueller started to testify.
He's clearly befuddled. It's sad to see someone with a lifetime of worthy service humiliated like this.
The report strongly suggests that Trump committed the crime of obstruction of justice. Mueller has confirmed every single instance from the report.
An impeachment hearing would not be constrained to relying solely on Mueller's testimony. Trump should be impeached and I think the result of today will be more calls for impeachment not less.
Mueller does seem old and not completely quick in bantering with the congresspeople. Nonetheless he has affirmed every single instance of obstruction of justice in the report.
It is obvious that Trump should be impeached. Muellers demeanor or lack of combativeness to the Republicans is immaterial to that.