This is why Mueller is tiptoeing around whether Trump committed a crime
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has carefully avoided saying whether he thinks President Trump committed criminal obstruction of justice but also pointedly underscored that he isn't exonerating him. Because a longstanding Justice Department policy says "a president cannot be charged with a federal crime while he's in office," charging Trump "with a crime was therefore not an option we could consider," Mueller said Wednesday. At the same time, he added, "if we had had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so." He did not say so.
This awkward dance of double-negatives has exasperated both Trump's supporters and critics, but Mueller and his team are also "frustrated by what they perceive as a lack of public understanding about this point — that Justice Department policy and fairness prohibit the special counsel from reaching a decision, even secretly, on whether the president committed a crime," The Washington Post reports.
Attorney General William Barr was either among those who misunderstood Mueller's reasoning, or he chose to publicly massage it. New York's Jonathan Chait opts for the latter explanation. Mueller evidently believes he "can't explicitly say" whether he would have charged Trump or "explicitly tell Congress to impeach" him, though "he's heavily hinting at both points," Chait says. "And Barr, who has been using Mueller's restraint to mislead the country about what Mueller concluded, has been exposed as the liar he is."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
The history of Donald Trump's election conspiracy theories
The Explainer How the 2024 Republican nominee has consistently stoked baseless fears of a stolen election
By David Faris Published
-
Two ancient cities have been discovered along the Silk Road
Under the radar The discovery changed what was known about the old trade route
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
'People shouldn't have to share the road with impaired drivers'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Menendez brothers may go free in LA prosecutor plan
Speed Read Prosecutors are asking for the brothers to be resentenced for the 1989 murder of their parents
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Abercrombie ex-CEO charged with sex crimes
Speed Read Mike Jeffries ran the brand during its heyday from 1992 to 2014
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump criminal trial starts with rulings, reminder
Speed Read The first day of his historic trial over hush money payments was mostly focused on jury selection
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Parents of school shooter sentenced to 10-15 years
Speed Read Jennifer and James Crumbley are the first parents to be convicted in a US mass shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Unlicensed dealers and black market guns
Speed Read 68,000 illegally trafficked guns were sold in a five year period, said ATF
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Bankman-Fried gets 25 years for fraud
Speed Read Former "crypto king" Sam Bankman-Fried will report to federal prison
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Feds raid Diddy homes in alleged sex trafficking case
Speed Read Homeland Security raided the properties of hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Goon Squad' cops sentenced for torturing 2 Black men
Speed Read The former Mississippi law enforcement officers pleaded guilty last year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published