This is predictably going horribly wrong for the Dems and the Deep State. Meuller appears to be laying grounds for a dementia defense to escape responsibility for his role in the charade. Chris Wallace: Robert Mueller hearing has been a 'disaster' for Democrats By David Montanaro | Fox News Chris Wallace says Mueller hearing has been a disaster for the Democrats and Robert Mueller's reputation 'Fox News Sunday' host Chris Wallace says Mueller's uncertainty during his House testimony raises questions about the degree of control he had over the Russia investigation. "Fox News Sunday" anchor Chris Wallace said former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's House hearing has turned into a "disaster" for Democrats and for the former FBI director's reputation. Responding after the first few hours of the hearing before the House Judiciary Committee hearing, Wallace said Mueller offered little defense of his investigation amid repeated attacks from Republicans. He said Mueller has not put forth much "testimony" or new information. "I think this has been a disaster for the Democrats and I think it's been a disaster for the reputation of Robert Mueller. He has seemed very uncertain with his brief. He doesn't seem to know things that are in the report," Wallace told Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum during Fox News Channel's all-day coverage of the House hearings. "Over and over, Mueller just sits silent and allows the attacks from the Republicans to sweep over him and says nothing." Mueller was frequently tripped up and forced to ask lawmakers to repeat their questions during his rapid-fire questioning on Capitol Hill, though he reportedly prepared at length for the hearings. At one point, he even said he wasn't familiar with Fusion GPS, the opposition research firm behind the controversial anti-Trump dossier. MUELLER REFUSES TO DISCUSS RUSSIA PROBE ORIGINS, STEELE DOSSIER IN TESTIMONY The longtime lawman was known to be reluctant to testify, having made clear he would largely stick to the boundaries of his original report. He reiterated Wednesday that his testimony before House committees would be based on the text of his report on Russian election interference and potential obstruction of the investigation. Wallace said Mueller's performance raises questions about the degree to which he was actually "in charge of the investigation." Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich agreed, arguing that she questions whether "partisans" were the driving force behind the investigation, as President Trump has claimed. "Robert Mueller is not doing himself any favors. He looks weak, he does not look strong, he cannot answer basic questions about what is in the report, when he's saying the report is what I'm referring to," she argued, adding Democrats are not getting what they wanted out of the hearing.
Mueller: I did not clear Trump of obstruction of justice WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert Mueller on Wednesday bluntly dismissed President Donald Trump’s claims of total exoneration in the federal probe of Russia’s 2016 election interference. The former special counsel told Congress he explicitly did not clear the president of obstructing his investigation. The televised Capitol Hill appearance, Mueller’s first since wrapping his two-year Russia probe last spring, unfolded at a moment of deep divisions in the country, with many Americans hardened in their opinions about the success of Donald Trump’s presidency and whether impeachment proceedings are necessary. https://www.apnews.com/f109a539220b41218860fa68176a9c98
Republicans confront Mueller with allegations of double standard in Russia probe By Brooke Singman | Fox News Rep. Jim Jordan to Mueller: Maybe a better course of action is to figure out how the false accusations started Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan presses former Special Counsel Robert Mueller on the origins of the Trump-Russia collusion investigation. Congressional Republicans accused former Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Wednesday of operating under a double standard in his Russia investigation, alleging during a heated Hill hearing that Mueller threw the book at Trump associates while ignoring wrongdoing by others. Republicans, for years, have attempted to draw a stark distinction between how the FBI and Mueller pursued allegations against President Trump and his campaign during the 2016 presidential election and how they reviewed alleged misconduct by prominent Democratic figures and those associated with them. MUELLER SAYS HE IS 'NOT FAMILIAR' WITH FUSION GPS, THE FIRM BEHIND STEELE DOSSIER On Wednesday, during the first round of Mueller’s testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, GOP lawmakers repeatedly confronted the former special counsel with that accusation -- with lines of questioning meant to illustrate a double standard. At one point, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, asked if he can say whether the controversial anti-Trump dossier “was not part of Russia’s disinformation campaign.” “No – as I said in my opening statement, I-uh, I, that part of the ... building of the case predated me by at least 10 months,” Mueller replied. Gaetz noted such reasoning did not stop prosecutors from going after Trump's former campaign chairman. “Paul Manafort’s alleged crimes regarding tax evasion predated you but you didn’t have a problem charging him,” he said. Gaetz and Mueller went back-and-forth over the anti-Trump dossier, which was authored and compiled by ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. The dossier was created on behalf of Fusion GPS—the firm that was hired to conduct opposition research funded by the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton campaign through law firm Perkins Coie. The dossier “formed an essential part” of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants approved to surveil then-Trump campaign associate Carter Page, according to a House GOP memo alleging government surveillance abuse during 2016. Gaetz complained Wednesday that concerns about Fusion and Steele were largely not in the report, and figures associated with them were not charged. "When people associated with Trump lie, you throw the book at them. When Christopher Steele [lies], nothing," he said. Mueller on Wednesday claimed he was “not familiar” with Fusion GPS, despite Steele’s reporting being referenced in his report. He also continued to state that the Steele matter is “beyond my purview.” Gaetz fired back: “No -- that’s directly in your purview Mr. Mueller and here’s why. Either Steele made this whole thing up and there were never any Russians telling him of this vast criminal conspiracy that you didn’t find, or, Russians lied to Steele.” MUELLER REFUSED TO DISCUSS RUSSIA PROBE ORIGINS, STEELE DOSSIER IN TESTIMONY “Now if Russians were lying to Steele to undermine our confidence in our newly elected president, that would be precisely in your purview because you stated in your opening that the organizing principle was to fully and thoroughly investigate Russian interference. But you weren’t interested in whether the Russians interfered through Steele—and if Steele was lying, then you should have charged him with lying like you charged a variety of other people,” Gaetz continued. The bulk of charges against Trump associates in Mueller’s investigation were based on false statements made either during the probe or to Congress. Six Trump campaign associates indicted in Mueller’s sprawling investigation were all charged with violating U.S.C. 1001—or making false statements. They include former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates; former Trump personal attorney Michael Cohen; former Trump adviser Roger Stone; former White House national security adviser Michael Flynn; and former Trump campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, directly questioned Mueller on his decisions to charge those “around the president” with false statements, and not several other key figures who played a central role in launching the investigation as a whole. Jordan referenced Maltese professor Joseph Mifsud, who in 2016 told Papadopoulos that the Russians had dirt in the form of emails that could damage Clinton’s presidential campaign. Papadopoulos then told Australian diplomat Alexander Downer of the new information. Downer reported Papadopoulos’ comments to him to the FBI and effectively launched the bureau’s original investigation into the Trump campaign and coordination with the Russian government, according to reports. “Three times Mifsud lied to the FBI and you didn’t charge him with a crime. He lied three times—you pointed it out in the report—why didn’t you charge him with a crime?” Jordan asked. Mueller replied: “I can’t get into internal deliberations with regard to who would or would not be--.” “You charged a lot of other people with making false statements. Let’s remember this, in 2016, the FBI did something they probably haven’t done before. They spied on two American citizens associated with a presidential campaign—George Papadopoulos and Carter Page,” Jordan said. “With Page, they went to the FISA court and used the now-famous dossier to get a warrant. With Papadopoulos, they didn’t go to court—they used human sources—from the moment Papadopoulos joined the Trump campaign, you got people all around the world starting to swirl around him.” Jordan went on to list Downer and Mifsud, among others. “Mifsud is the guy who told Papadopoulos [about Russian dirt], he was the guy who started it all, yet when the FBI interviews him, he lies three times. You don’t charge him,” Jordan said. “The guy who starts the country through this saga—for three years we’ve been going through this now—he lies, you guys don’t charge him, and I’m curious to why.” Mueller responded: “Well I can’t get into it and it’s obvious, I think, that we can’t get into charging decisions.” “You can charge 13 Russians no one’s ever heard of, no one’s ever seen, no one’s ever going to see, you can charge all kind of people who were around the president with false statements, but the guy who launches everything—puts this whole show in motion—you don’t charge him. I think that’s amazing,” Jordan said. “I’m not sure I agree with your characterizations,” Mueller said in an attempt to defend his report and team’s work. “Well I’m reading from your report,” Jordan scoffed back. The president, his surrogates, and Republicans on Capitol Hill since the start of the Mueller investigation have called for a separate probe into alleged misconduct at the FBI and with regard to the initial opening of its Russia counterintelligence review. “Maybe a better course of action is to figure out how the false accusations started. Maybe find out why Mifsud was lying to the FBI—and here’s the good news—that’s exactly what Bill Barr is doing and thank goodness for that,” Jordan said. Barr appointed U.S. Attorney from Connecticut John Durham to probe “all intelligence collection activities” related to the Trump campaign during the 2016 presidential election. Barr assigned Durham to also conduct the inquiry into alleged misconduct and alleged improper government surveillance on the Trump campaign, as well as whether Democrats were the ones who improperly coordinated with foreign actors.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/07/robert-mueller-testimony-latest-updates-190724004507548.html Highlights so far In case you need to catch up, here are some highlights after more than two hours of Mueller's testimony before the House Judiciary panel hearing: On Trump: "Obstruction of justice strikes at the core of the government's effort to find the truth and to hold wrongdoers accountable," Mueller said. "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," the former special counsel told the panel. Asked whether the report exonerated Trump on the question of obstruction of justice, Mueller said: "That is not what the report said." "The president was not exculpated for the acts that he allegedly committed," Mueller told members of Congress. Asked if Trump wanted Mueller fired for investigating possible obstruction of justice: "That's what it says in the report, yes. I stand by the report." On Attorney General William Barr's role: "I will not comment on the actions of the attorney general or of Congress," Mueller said. "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," the former special counsel said. Nature of the probe Mueller said disagreed with Republican Representative Ken Buck's assertion that said the list of incidents that could be obstruction of justice in the report was an attempt to throw "a bunch of stuff against the wall to see what would stick".
Screaming GOP talking point interpretations. Yawn. Mueller said flatly that Trump obstructed. We not only have a pedophile in the white house - we also have a felon. The Dems asked clear, blunt questions that were absolutely devastating. Facts don't care about your feelings
Not posting everything from this CNN rundown, but a few of them are interesting. I do like how point 6 finishes. It's...well, pretty obvious based on every political thread in OT. https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/24/politics/robert-mueller-testimony-highlights/index.html 2. Mueller has already disappointed Republicans In his opening statement, Mueller made clear that he would be unable to address anything related to the origins of the counterintelligence investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election or the so-called "Steele dossier," an opposition research document put together by former British spy Christopher Steele. President Trump has long insisted that the entire investigation -- the initial probe which led to the appointment of the special counsel and all that followed from it -- was illegal because it was based on the Steele document, which contained research that was partially funded by Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee. Mueller's affirmation that he would not answer any questions about the genesis of the probe and/or the Steele dossier takes a major line of questioning off the table for Republicans. 3. ... and Democrats In that same opening statement, Mueller said he would not address any questions involving Attorney General William Barr or the actions of Congress. That's a big blow for Democrats, who very much wanted to explore differences in public statements about the special counsel investigation between Mueller and Barr, particularly as it related to how Barr characterized the findings of the report on obstruction. It's not entirely clear if Democrats on the committee will have any success in even nibbling at the edges of the Barr-Mueller divisions and discrepancies, but what is obvious is that the former special counsel has zero interest in engaging on it. 4. Mueller has been shaky so far If Democrats hoped that Mueller would easily bat away Republican attacks -- on him and on his report -- they have been sorely disappointed in the opening moments of his testimony. Mueller seemingly contradicted himself (and the report) when he told Doug Collins, the ranking Republican member on the committee, that collusion and conspiracy were not the same thing. Mueller also seemed to struggle to hear and/or understand questions from member of both sides as well as to find various references members were making to the Mueller report, asking for questions to be repeated. Democrats viewed the hearing as a chance for the public to hear what the President did (and didn't do) from a straight-out-of-central-casting prosecutor. Mueller isn't coming across like that so far. 6. This is actually two different hearings When Democrats ask questions of Mueller, they mostly follow this blueprint: a) praise Mueller for his service b) ask Mueller to draw conclusions from his report c) when Mueller declines to do so, read a portion of the report d) say that Trump clearly obstructed the investigation and e) thank Mueller for his service. When Republicans ask question of Mueller, they mostly follow this blueprint: a) yell at Mueller b) ask him questions about Christopher Steele that -- per point No. 2 above -- he has already said he will not go into and c) conclude that Mueller unfairly persecuted Trump and his inner circle. The whiplash is stark. And means -- stop me if you've heard this before -- that people will likely hear what they want to hear coming out of this hearing.
Wait a sec Bob, WTF? Mueller says he is 'not familiar' with Fusion GPS, the firm behind the Steele dossier By Brooke Singman | Fox News Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller said he was “not familiar” with Fusion GPS — the firm whose opposition research included allegations of President Trump's connections to Russia in the run-up to Mueller’s two-year investigation — during his Capitol Hill testimony on Wednesday. During Mueller's highly anticipated appearance before the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, asked the ex-special counsel about a section of his report that referenced a heavily scrutinized meeting at Trump Tower in June 2016 with members of the Trump campaign and Russian attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya -- and asked about related research for Fusion GPS by ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. MUELLER REFUSES TO DISCUSS RUSSIA PROBE ORIGINS, STEELE DOSSIER IN TESTIMONY “When discussing the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting, you reference ‘the firm that produced the Steele reporting.’ The name of that firm was Fusion GPS. Is that correct?” Chabot asked. Mueller asked for the page number the congressman was referring to, and fumbled through his more than 400-page report. “Page 103. That’s correct- Volume II. When you talk about the firm that produced the Steele reporting, the name of the firm that produced that was Fusion GPS. Is that correct?” “I am not familiar with—with that, I—,” Mueller replied. “It was. It’s not a trick question. It was Fusion GPS,” Chabot said. Steele authored and compiled information for the controversial and unverified anti-Trump dossier on behalf of Fusion GPS — the firm that was hired to conduct opposition research funded by the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton campaign through law firm Perkins Coie. The dossier “formed an essential part” of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants approved to surveil then-Trump campaign associate Carter Page, according to a House GOP memo alleging government surveillance abuse during 2016. Mueller’s report references “the firm” on Page 103 — noting that President Trump’s legal team suggested that the meeting with Veselnitskaya, former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, Trump’s eldest son Donald Trump Jr., and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, “might have been a setup by individuals working with the firm that produced the Steele reporting.” Fox News reported in 2017 that co-founder of Fusion GPS Glenn Simpson met with Veselnitskaya before and after the meeting at Trump Tower. Republicans have been asking questions about the Steele dossier and the origins of the Russia investigation for months. Attorney General Bill Barr has appointed U.S. Attorney from Connecticut John Durham to probe “all intelligence collection activities” related to the Trump campaign during the 2016 presidential election. Barr assigned Durham to also conduct the inquiry into alleged misconduct and alleged improper government surveillance on the Trump campaign, as well as whether Democrats were the ones who improperly coordinated with foreign actors. Republicans on both the House Judiciary Committee and the House Intelligence Committee planned to question Mueller on the origins of the first Russia investigation at the FBI during the summer of 2016 — but Mueller said he would not respond to those questions.
Just another day in dysfunctional and partisan Washington D.C. Did anyone on this board really expect anything differently than exactly what we are seeing?? Is anyone that delusional (or truly stupid) enough to think that this “hearing” would produce anything new or earth shaking???? No wonder nothing of value ever gets done by our government. What a bunch of morons. And that goes for anyone who thinks ANY of these people have any real value to our country, regardless of their political affiliation.
Now I know why people like Struck and Page were allowed to be key players in the investigation, because Mueller is an old worn out typical high ranking gov employee, that doesn't care or realize what his staff was up to. This guy spent two years and a ton of money, assembling a case for collusion and obstruction and basically said, no collusion and cant make a decision on obstruction. I hope the other investigations that are going on get to the truth. This doesn't surprise me though as even congress cant seem to do their job much anymore. I don't like Trump at all, and didn't like or Trust the Clinton cartel. I still have hope however, that this Nation will heal and continue to prosper. There is a wonderful reason why so many around the world want to come here and reside.
So many realize that politics is just a short window to take as much wealth and you can and run.....money is the big political affiliation for most of these guys...for the higher ups who already have it, it's all about power and insuring they keep their wealth. Interesting to me that they all use banks in Cypress or Germany....I'd think they'd give American banks their business
Correcting his lie from earlier in the day: Mueller issues clarification, takes back bombshell statement about indicting Trump By Ronn Blitzer | Fox News Mueller corrects testimony, says his probe did not reach determination as to whether Trump committed a crime Former special counsel Robert Mueller corrects the answer he gave to Rep. Ted Lieu that guidance from the Office of Legal Counsel prevented an indictment of President Trump. Robert Mueller kicked off his testimony before the House Intelligence Committee Wednesday afternoon by issuing a clarification of something he said during a morning hearing about his decision-making process when it came to the question of whether President Trump committed obstruction of justice. Mueller raised eyebrows during an exchange with House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif. “The reason that you did not indict the president is because of the OLC opinion that you cannot indict a sitting president, correct?” Lieu asked, referring to the Office of Legal Counsel’s long-held position against charging a president while they are in office. “Correct,” Mueller replied. That gave the impression that if it were not for the OLC opinion, Mueller would have indicted the president. In the afternoon, Mueller was quick to say that is not what he was trying to say at all. “I want to add one correction to my testimony this morning," Mueller said. "I want to go back to one thing that was said this morning by Mr. Lieu, who said and I quote, ‘You didn’t charge the President because of the OLC opinion. That is not the correct way to say it. As we say in the report and as I said at the opening, we did not reach a determination as to whether the President committed a crime.” REPUBLICANS CONFRONT MUELLER WITH ALLEGATIONS OF DOUBLE STANDARD IN RUSSIA PROBE Mueller made it clear that he did not intend to support Lieu’s implication that Mueller would have indicted Trump if not for the OLC opinion. That would have meant that Mueller determined that Trump committed a crime, but could not do anything about it.
Collusion is not a crime and wasn't investigated as such. Mueller did not say he couldn't make a case for obstruction because he could not indict. He left it up to congress which is what is happening now and there is evidence in the report that says he obstructed. If Clinton can be brought up on impeachment charges for lying about sex there is plenty more evidence against trump. The guy is simply not good for this country it it makes no difference whether he is a republican or democrat. The guy simply can't tell the truth.
