Why the Mueller report, for all its meticulous detail, fell flat

If you've watched cable news or read newspapers for the last two years, you know most of what's in the Mueller report.
That was perhaps the biggest surprise in poring over it. Even the president's lawyers were surprised by that.
On issue after issue, the special counsel's report describes what we already know — about President Trump and Michael Cohen, Trump and Paul Manafort, Trump and Michael Flynn — and ultimately says no collusion with Russia and only inconclusive evidence of possible obstruction of justice.
To be sure, there's a text message here or a voice mail there that paints a fuller picture. But for the most part, the report consists of lengthy legal arguments as to why the president could have obstructed justice, might arguably have obstructed justice — only to say that Mueller's office makes no recommendation.
That means, in my view, there's no one anecdote or admission that political and media critics can seize upon to change the overarching narrative, that Mueller is bringing no further charges.
In fact, the best single scene is when Jeff Sessions told Trump that a special counsel had been appointed, the president replied: "Oh my God. This is terrible. This is the end of my presidency. I’m f---ed." Then he demanded to know how Sessions could let this happen.
But of course, he railed against Sessions and his recusal so many times, until the AG was forced out, that we sort of knew that (minus the F-bomb).
All this is great fodder for the press, and for legal scholars, and for historians. But there's very little that will change people's minds as to whether Donald Trump engaged in misconduct.
Some examples:
— When Trump called Paul Manafort, during jury deliberations, a "very good person" and said "it's very sad what they've done to Paul Manafort," the comments could "engender sympathy for Manafort among jurors" if they learned of the remarks. But there are "alternative explanations," such as that he "genuinely felt sorry for Manafort" or was trying to influence public opinion, not the jury.
— "There is evidence" that the president knew Michael Cohen had testified falsely before Congress about continuing efforts during the campaign to win approval for a Trump Tower in Moscow. But the available evidence "does not establish that the president directed or aided Cohen's false testimony."
It's like a legal seminar, as the report rehashes the mostly known facts, floats the most damaging interpretations, offers the counter-argument and concludes there is insufficient evidence.
Less flattering for Trump:
— His firing of Jim Comey, request to his White House counsel to have Bob Mueller fired, and direction to Corey Lewandowski to ask Sessions to limit the scope of Mueller's probe all could be viewed as trying to undercut the investigation. But these efforts were largely unsuccessful because the people around Trump "declined to carry out orders or accede to his requests."
— When a reporter said the vast majority of FBI agents supported the just-fired Comey, Sarah Sanders said: "we've heard from countless members of the FBI who say very different things." She told Mueller's office this was a "slip of the tongue" that occurred "'in the heat of the moment' that was not founded on anything."
— Trump told Mueller in written answers that he had no advance knowledge of the infamous Trump Tower meeting between Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, Paul Manafort and a Russian lawyer. In 2017, Hope Hicks and another aide — after discussions with Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump — said the emails involved would inevitably leak and should be released. Hicks was shocked by the emails and thought they looked "really bad." Jared, Ivanka and Hope urged the president to release the emails — Hicks said they could do it as part of an interview with "softball questions" — but he disagreed that they would leak.
When The New York Times got onto the story, the president dictated that they should just say the meeting was about Russian adoptions. Don Jr. objected, asking that the word "primarily" be added because there was briefly a discussion about Hillary Clinton: "If I don't have it in there it appears as though I'm lying later when they inevitably leak something." The Times soon obtained the emails, leading to a wave of bad press.
But all this is pretty down in the weeds. And that's in part because so much of what the president said and did in battling Mueller played out in public.
What is muting the report's impact, in my view, is that expectations were so sky-high. The media, having invested so much capital in this probe for two years, only to be let down by the lack of criminal charges, were betting that the actual report would be explosive. And yet it was more popgun than big-time bomb.

George Conway calls Trump a cancer that needs to be removed in blistering op-ed

Jealous??

George Conway, the husband of White House adviser Kellyanne Conway and a fierce critic of President Trump, penned an op-ed in The Washington Post that calls Trump a "cancer on the presidency" and urged Congress to take action to remove him from office.
After 22 months, a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia interference report was made available to the public. The report showed no evidence that Trump’s team “coordinated or conspired” with Russia, but many Democrats pointed out that Mueller identified 10 times where there was potential obstruction, and essentially left the next steps up to Congress.
Mueller wrote that Trump’s efforts to obstruct “were often carried out through one-on-one meetings in which the President sought to use his official power outside of usual channels.”
He continued, “The President's efforts to influence the investigation were mostly unsuccessful, but that is largely because the persons who surrounded the President declined to carry out orders or accede to his requests."
Trump's team late Thursday appeared to take a wait-and-see approach on how the public absorbed the findings. Rudy Giuliani, Trump's lawyer, seemed to be in no particular hurry to release a 45-page rebuttal when asked about it on CNN.  The White House claimed total victory and vindication for the president
Conway, who has clashed publicly with the president before and questioned his mental fitness, barely touches collusion in his piece but highlighted the obstruction argument.
"Mueller couldn’t say, with any “confidence,” that the president of the United States is not a criminal. He said, stunningly, that “if we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state.” Mueller did not so state," Conway wrote.
He pointed out that even if Trump did not reach the threshold of criminality, he could still be impeached based on earlier precedent. He called on Congress to act to “excise” the cancer in the White House “without delay.”
There is no love lost between Trump and Conway. Trump has called Conway a “stone cold LOSER & husband from hell.”
“George Conway, often referred to as Mr. Kellyanne Conway by those who know him, is VERY jealous of his wife’s success & angry that I, with her help, didn’t give him the job he so desperately wanted. I barely know him but just take a look, a stone cold LOSER & husband from hell!” Trump tweeted in March.
Andrew McCarthy, a former federal prosecutor, wrote in the New York Post that Trump could have simply shut down the investigation and assert executive privilege to “deny the special counsel access to key White House witnesses,” but he didn’t.
“Most important, the special counsel found that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and that the president’s frustration wasn’t over fear of guilt — the typical motivation for obstruction — but that the investigation was undermining his ability to govern the country,” McCarthy wrote.

CNN's April Ryan calls for Sarah Sanders to be fired

CNN political analyst April Ryan called for the firing of White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Thursday, claiming Sanders “lied” to the media following the release of the Mueller report.
In May 2017, following the turbulent firing of FBI Director James Comey, Sanders told reporters that “countless” FBI agents had lost confidence in Comey despite one reporter’s assertion that the “vast majority” of them supported his leadership. According to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office, Sanders told investigators her claim was a “slip of the tongue” and was “in the heat of the moment,” admitting that it was not founded on anything.
Ryan, who is also a White House reporter for the American Urban Radio Networks, blasted the press secretary on Thursday night for “lying” to the American people.
“Not only does she not have any credibility left, she lied,” Ryan told CNN anchor Erin Burnett. “She outright lied and the people, the American people can't trust her. They can't trust what's said from the president's mouthpiece, spokesperson, from the people's house. Therefore, she should be let go. She should be fired. End of story. When there is a lack of credibility there, you have to start and start lopping the heads off. It’s ‘Fire Me Thursday’ or ‘Fire Me Good Friday,’ she needs to go."
The CNN pundit suggested that since President Trump “won’t take the fall” that Sanders might instead.
“Sarah plays a dangerous game in that room… The game is dangerous because she is lying to the American public,” Ryan continued. “Then, on top of all that, she says the press is fake when she’s faking reports from the people’s house. She’s calling us fake? We’ve had colleagues who’ve had to move from their houses because of threats. I have to have security because of being called ‘fake’ and a ‘loser’ and all sorts of things from that White House. It’s time for her to go.”
Sanders appeared on “Hannity” on Thursday night and reiterated that she shouldn't have used the word “countless,” but insisted it was “not untrue” that “a number of current and former FBI agents agreed with the president” about Comey, whom she called a “disgraced leaker.”

Trump's written -- at times snarky -- answers to Mueller's questions revealed

Special Counsel Robert Mueller and President Trump communicated directly at one point during the long-running investigation into Russian election interference, when the president's legal team submitted written testimony in response to Mueller's questions on a variety of topics in November 2018.
And in some cases, Trump and his attorneys brought the sass.
One of Mueller's questions referred to a July 2016 campaign rally, when Trump said, "Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing."
That was a reference to the slew of documents deleted from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's private email server. Trump's comment prompted numerous frenzied accusations that he was openly sending a signal to Russian hackers.
Mueller's report noted that hours after Trump's remarks, a Russian-led attempt to access some Clinton-linked email accounts was launched, although there was no evidence Trump or his team directed or coordinated with that effort.
"Why did you make that request of Russia, as opposed to any other country, entity or individual?" Mueller's prosecutors asked.
Mueller's report noted that after Trump's statement, future National Security Adviser Flynn contacted operatives in hopes of uncovering the documents, and another GOP consultant started a company to look for the emails.
"I made the statement quoted in Question II (d) in jest and sarcastically, as was apparent to any objective observer," Trump, speaking through his attorneys, shot back. "The context of the statement is evident in the full reading or viewing of the July 27, 2016, press conference, and I refer you to the publicly available transcript and video of that press conference."
Separately, Mueller asked Trump why he previewed a speech in June 2016 by promising to discuss "all of the things that have taken place with the Clintons," and what specifically he'd planned to talk about.
Trump didn't hold back.
"In general, l expected to give a speech referencing the publicly available, negative information about the Clintons, including, for example, Mrs. Clinton's failed policies, the Clintons' use of the State Department to further their interests and the interests of the Clinton Foundation, Mrs. Clinton's improper use of a private server for State Department business, the destruction of 33,000 emails on that server, and Mrs. Clinton's temperamental unsuitability for the office of the president," Trump responded.
After discussing other events, Trump concluded his reply: "I continued to speak about Mrs. Clinton's failings throughout the campaign, using the information prepared for inclusion in the speech to which I referred on June 7, 2016."
In all, Mueller's 448-page report included 23 unredacted pages of Mueller's written questions and Trump's written responses. The special counsel's team wrote that it tried to interview the president for more than a year before relenting and permitting the written responses alone.
An introductory note included in the report said the special counsel's office found the responses indicative of "the inadequacy of the written format," especially given the office's inability to ask follow-up questions.
Citing dozens of answers that Mueller's team considered incomplete, imprecise or not provided because of the president's lack of recollection — for instance, the president gave no response at all to the final set of questions — the special counsel's office again sought an in-person interview with Trump, and he once again declined.
Mueller's team said it considered seeking a subpoena to compel Trump's in-person testimony, but decided the legally aggressive move would only serve to delay the investigation.
Fox News' Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Adam Schiff Cartoons

Karl Rove: Months of Democrats demanding redacted Mueller report ahead

Republican strategist Karl Rove doesn’t see Thursday’s Mueller report release as the end of a the Trump-Russia collusion narrative, he sees it as “the beginning of the next chapter”
“I wish I believed it was their last gasp. I think tomorrow is the beginning of the next chapter,” Rove said on “Hannity.”
Attorney General William Barr is set to hold a 9:30 a.m. news conference Thursday accompanied by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein ahead of the Justice Department's planned release of a redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election
“I think it is going to be first and foremost focusing on…  they want the entire document and that's going lead then to charges that he obstructed justice and then it's going to be ‘Katie bar the door.’”
Rove added, “It's going to be months and months in my opinion of demanding a completely unredacted copy of it.”
President Trump has reportedly prepared a retort and Democrats including Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are unhappy with roll out.
“AG Barr has thrown out his credibility & the DOJ’s independence with his single-minded effort to protect @realDonaldTrump above all else. The American people deserve the truth, not a sanitized version of the Mueller Report approved by the Trump Admin,” Nancy Pelosi tweeted Wednesday.
Rove noted that Democrats will not be satisfied with tomorrow’s redacted report and will continue to promote their narrative.
“People like Adam Schiff and Jerry Nadler are going to be calling for the immediate and total release of everything. You see it in the language of Nancy Pelosi who says that Barr is usurping the responsibility of Congress. Congress is supposed to be the judge and jury, not our legal system,” Rove told Sean Hannity.

Nadler, Pelosi, other Dems blast DOJ ahead of Mueller report release

Democrats in Congress attacked Attorney General William Barr Wednesday evening ahead of the Justice Department's planned release of a redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.
Barr is set to hold a 9:30 a.m. news conference Thursday accompanied by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversaw the Mueller investigation after the special counsel's appointment in May 2017. Neither Mueller nor other members of his team will attend, according to special counsel spokesman Peter Carr. Democrats have criticized the timing of the news conference, saying that Barr would get to present his interpretation of the Mueller report before Congress and the public see it.
At a news conference Wednesday evening, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said the panel was expected to receive a copy of the report between 11 a.m. and noon, "well after the attorney general's 9:30 a.m. press conference. This is wrong."
"The attorney general appears to be waging a media campaign on behalf of President Trump, the very subject of the investigation at the heart of the Mueller report," Nadler told reporters. "Rather than letting the facts of the report speak for themselves, the attorney general has taken unprecedented steps to spin Mueller’s nearly two-year investigation."
Hakeem Jeffries, another member of the Judiciary Committee and the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, accused Barr -- whom Jeffries dubbed the "so-called Attorney General" of "presiding over a dog and pony show.
"Here is a thought," Jeffries added. "Release the Mueller report tomorrow morning and keep your mouth shut. You have ZERO credibility."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., tweeted that Barr "has thrown out his credibility & the DOJ’s independence with his single-minded effort to protect ⁦‪@realDonaldTrump⁩ above all else. The American people deserve the truth, not a sanitized version of the Mueller Report approved by the Trump Admin."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said, "The process is poisoned before the report is even released."
"Barr shouldn't be spinning the report at all, but it's doubly outrageous he's doing it before America is given a chance to read it," Schumer added.
Democrats were further angered Wednesday by a New York Times report which said Justice Department officials have had "numerous conversations with White House lawyers" about Mueller's conclusions, which have aided the president's legal team as it prepares a rebuttal to the special counsel's report. The Times report has not been independently confirmed by Fox News.
Late Wednesday, Nadler and four other Democratic committee chairs released a joint statement calling on Barr to cancel the Thursday morning news conference, calling it "unnecessary and inappropriate."
"He [Barr] should let the full report speak for itself, read the statement from Nadler, Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Elijah Cummings, D-Md., Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and Eliot Engel, D-N.Y. "The Attorney General should cancel the press conference and provide the full report to Congress, as we have requested. With the Special Counsel’s fact-gathering work concluded, it is now Congress’ responsibility to assess the findings and evidence and proceed accordingly."
In court filings in the case against Roger Stone on Wednesday, the Justice Department also said it planned to provide a "limited number" of members of Congress and their staff access to a copy of the Mueller report with fewer redactions than the public version. Nadler claimed Wednesday evening that the Judiciary Committee "has no knowledge of this and this should not be read as any agreement or knowledge or assent on our part."
Nadler added that he would "probably find it useful" to call Mueller and members of his team to testify after reading the version of the report Barr releases.
The report is expected to reveal what Mueller uncovered about ties between the Trump campaign and Russia that fell short of criminal conduct. And, it likely will lay out the special counsel's conclusions about formative episodes in Trump's presidency, including his firing of FBI Director James Comey; his request of Comey to end an investigation into Trump's first national security adviser, Michael Flynn; his relentless badgering of former Attorney General Jeff Sessions over his recusal from the Russia investigation; and his role in drafting an explanation about a meeting his oldest son took at Trump Tower with a Kremlin-connected lawyer.
The report is not expected to place the president in legal jeopardy, as Barr made his own decision that Trump shouldn't be prosecuted for obstruction. But it is likely to contain unflattering details about the president's efforts to control the Russia investigation
Overall, Mueller brought charges against 34 people — including six Trump aides and advisers — and revealed a sophisticated, wide-ranging Russian effort to influence the 2016 presidential election. Twenty-five of those charged were Russians accused either in the hacking of Democratic email accounts or of a hidden but powerful social media effort to spread disinformation online.
Five former Trump aides or advisers pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate in Mueller's investigation, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, former national security adviser Michael Flynn and his former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Stone is awaiting trial on charges including false statements and obstruction.
Fox News' Jake Gibson, Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Ann Coulter says she’d consider vote for Bernie Sanders

Conservative commentator Ann Coulter said she could support Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, in 2020 and even floated the idea of working in his administration if he returned to his earlier stance on immigration.
In a preview clip of PBS’s “Firing Line with Margaret Hoover” released Wednesday, host Margaret Hoover asked Coulter how she viewed the progressive senator. She asked whether she would support him if he campaign on “getting rid of low-skilled workers” to ensure higher wages.
“If he went back to his original position, which is the pro-blue-collar position. I mean, it totally makes sense with him," she said. If he went back to that position, I’d vote for him. I might work for him. I don’t care about the rest of the socialist stuff. Just-- can we do something for ordinary Americans?”
Coulter was apparently referencing Sanders’ policy position from 2007 where he opposed an immigration reform bill that he feared would drive down wages for lower-income workers. He co-authored a restrictive immigration amendment with Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-IA. The bill ultimately failed to pass the Senate.
Sanders rejected the idea of having open borders while speaking at a campaign event earlier this month.
“What we need is comprehensive immigration reform. If you open the borders, my God, there's a lot of poverty in this world, and you're going to have people from all over the world. And I don't think that's something that we can do at this point. Can't do it. So that is not my position,” Sanders said.
Coulter, who authored the book “In Trump We Trust” ahead of the 2016 election, was an early supporter of Donald Trump but has since become a vocal critic of the president for not keeping his campaign promise of building a wall at the southern border.