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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He sounds scared. I wonder why?
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.
No wonder he's so scared. The turd 'president' that is.
he hears a flushing sound
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.
Exactly.
No RATIONAL person.
And we can see who has bought the Democratic Party lines and lies.
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.
UPDATE 6-Mueller defends inquiry's integrity, says he did not exonerate Trump
(Adds Republican criticism of Mueller, further testimony from former special counsel)
By David Morgan and Jan Wolfe
WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) - Former U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Wednesday defended the integrity of his Russia investigation during a dramatic congressional hearing and reiterated that he had not cleared President Donald Trump of obstruction of justice or, as the president has said, totally exonerated Trump.
Mueller appeared for eagerly anticipated testimony at the first of two back-to-back congressional hearings that carry high stakes for Trump and Democrats who are split between impeaching him or moving on to the 2020 election.
The former FBI director, who spent 22 months investigating Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election and Trump's conduct, appeared first before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee.
The committee's Democratic chairman, Jerrold Nadler, praised Mueller and said no one, including Trump, is "above the law." But Republicans tried to paint Mueller's investigation as unfair to Trump, with conservative congressman Louie Gohmert heatedly telling him "you perpetuated injustice."
Trump has claimed that the Mueller inquiry resulted in the president's "complete and total exoneration." Asked by Nadler if he had exonerated Trump, Mueller said, "No."
Mueller, accused by Trump of heading a "witch hunt" and trying to orchestrate a "coup" against the Republican president, said his inquiry was conducted in "a fair and independent manner" and that members of the special counsel's team "were of the highest integrity." Trump has accused Mueller of having conflicts of interest. Mueller noted that Justice Department ethics officials confirmed he had no such conflicts.
"Let me say one more thing," Mueller said. "Over the course of my career, I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy. The Russian government's effort to interfere with our election is among the most serious."
Mueller, 74, was surrounded by news photographers as he took his place in the packed hearing room, showing little apparent emotion as he scanned the scene. Mueller faced a series of rapid-fire questions from lawmakers in both parties, several times asking them to repeat their questions and often referring them to the text of the report itself. Some Republicans interrupted Mueller as he was trying to answer questions.
"That went a little fast for me," Mueller told Doug Collins, the committee's top Republican, at one point.
In a comment sure to disappoint Republicans, Mueller said he would not answer questions about the origins of the Russia probe in the FBI before he was named to take over the inquiry in 2017 or about a controversial dossier compiled by a former British intelligence agent. Republicans have tried to portray the investigation as a politically motivated attack on Trump.
Mueller was set to testify later in the day before the House Intelligence Committee. Democrats control the House, while Trump's fellow Republicans control the Senate.
The hearing provided Democrats a chance to air publicly and in plain language the key findings of the sometimes dense Mueller report. Democrats entered the hearings hoping Mueller's testimony would rally public support behind their own ongoing investigations of the president and his administration. Democrats are deeply divided over whether to launch the impeachment process set out in the U.S. Constitution for removing a president from office for "high crimes and misdemeanors."
Mueller's inquiry detailed numerous contacts between Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and Russia at a time when the Kremlin was interfering in the 2016 U.S. election with a scheme of hacking and propaganda to sow discord among Americans and boost Trump's candidacy.
Mueller's investigative report said the inquiry found insufficient evidence to establish that Trump and his campaign engaged in a criminal conspiracy with Russia. The report did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump committed the crime of obstruction of justice in a series of actions aimed at impeding the inquiry, but pointedly did not exonerate him.
Democrats repeatedly asked Mueller about actions by Trump, including at one point telling his White House counsel to remove the special counsel.
"Obstruction of justice strikes at the core of the government's efforts to find the truth and to hold wrongdoers accountable," Mueller testified.
Attorney General William Barr, a Trump appointee, subsequently cleared the president of obstruction of justice.
The Justice Department has a longstanding policy against bringing criminal charges against a sitting president.
'PRINCIPLES OF FAIRNESS'
In his opening statement, Mueller reiterated that his team had decided not to make a determination on the question of obstruction. "Based on Justice Department policy and principles of fairness, we decided we would not make a determination as to whether the president committed a crime. That was our decision then and remains our decision today," Mueller said.
Nadler said in his opening statement that Mueller conducted the inquiry with "remarkable integrity" and was "subjected to repeated and grossly unfair personal attacks."
"Although department policy barred you from indicting the president for this conduct, you made clear that he is not exonerated. Any other person who acted in this way would have been charged with crimes. And in this nation, not even the president is above the law," Nadler said.
But Republican congressman John Ratcliffe accused Mueller of exceeding his authority in the report's extensive discussion of potential obstruction of justice by Trump after the special counsel made the decision not to draw a conclusion on whether Trump committed a crime. Ratcliffe agreed that Trump was not above the law, but said the president should not be "below the law" either.
Collins said the facts of the Mueller report are that "Russia meddled in the 2016 election. The president did not conspire with Russians. Nothing we hear today will change those facts."
"The president watched the public narrative surrounding the investigation assume his guilt while he knew the extent of his innocence," Collins said. "The president's attitude towards the investigation was understandably negative, yet the president did not use his authority to close the investigation."
Republican Representative Steve Chabot said Wednesday's hearing was the "last, best hope" by Democrats "to build up some sort of groundswell across America to impeach President Trump. That's what this is really all about today." Chabot also told Mueller some people thought his report was "a pretty one-sided attack on the president."
Republican Representative James Sensenbrenner noted that Mueller's report never referred to actions by Trump as potentially impeachable conduct.
Before the hearing, Trump complained on Twitter that Mueller had not investigated various of the president's foes including 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and, referring to the former special counsel, "HIMSELF."
Trump has accused Mueller of having conflicts of interest and called the special counsel's team of lawyers "thugs" with a Democratic political agenda. Trump is hoping to move beyond the Russia investigation as he runs for re-election in 2020, with a large field of Democratic candidates competing for their party's nomination to challenge him.
Mueller's investigation led to criminal charges against 34 people and three Russian entities. People who were convicted at trial or pleaded guilty included Trump's former campaign chairman and other aides.
The Justice Department on Monday sent a letter telling Mueller to limit his testimony to merely discussing what is written in the report, a directive that the two committee chairmen rejected as exceeding the department's authority.
Mueller appeared for his testimony reluctantly and only after being subpoenaed.
Until Wednesday, Mueller had not faced questioning in public about his findings. He remained silent when the Justice Department on April 18 released a redacted version of his 448-page investigation report, which the special counsel had submitted to Attorney General Barr the prior month. Mueller made a nine-minute statement to reporters on May 29 at the Justice Department but took no questions.
Mueller, who served as Federal Bureau of Investigation director from 2001 to 2013 under presidents in both parties, was named as special counsel by the Justice Department in May 2017 to take over the FBI's Russia probe after Trump fired James Comey as the agency's chief. Mueller's inquiry lasted 22 months.
With a no-nonsense reputation, Mueller is a Marine Corps combat veteran from the Vietnam War who later served as a federal prosecutor and became the architect of the modern FBI after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
(Reporting by David Morgan; Additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Will Dunham, Bernadette Baum and Jonathan Oatis)
It was never the point or purpose of the investigation to exonerate anyone.