The Mueller Statement

After release of the Mueller report in April, Donald Trump and his supporters insisted that the 400+ pages cleared him of collusion. Both branches of Congress continue investigations, while the White House resists subpoenas and interviews, maintaining the “case is closed.” So representatives are conflicted about whether to launch impeachment proceedings. Special Counsel Robert Mueller presented his own summary. The first part describes Russia’s systematic attack on the election, targeting the Hillary Clinton campaign in favor of Trump, and the second part describes obstruction: “When a subject of an investigation obstructs that investigation or lies to investigators, it strikes at the core of their government's effort to find the truth and hold wrongdoers accountable.” Mueller did not exonerate the president: “And as set forth in the report, after that investigation, if we had had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so. We did not, however, make a determination as to whether the president did commit a crime.” While US Department of Justice policy prohibits indictment of a sitting president, the investigation proceeded “because it is important to preserve evidence while memories are fresh and documents available” and “that evidence could be used if there were co-conspirators who could be charged now.” That opinion also outlines the next step: “the Constitution requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing.” The duty of removing an aberrant and corrupt president belongs to US Congress. Mueller emphasized the “multiple systemic efforts to interfere in our election,” concluding “that allegation deserves the attention of every American.” All Americans should read the Mueller report. – YaleGlobal