Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller during his opening statement before Congress previewed a "limited" testimony and offered a reminder that he did not address "collusion" during his report.
"We did not address collusion, which is not a legal term," Mueller said during his opening statement before the House Judiciary Committee. "Rather, we focused on whether the evidence was sufficient to charge any member of the campaign with taking part in a criminal conspiracy. It was not."
Mueller in his opening statement also made clear he plans to stick to the "text" of his report during this testimony, which he described as "unusual" after previously indicating in a press conference he did not wish to speak about his report further.
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"The report is my testimony, and I will stay within that text," Mueller told Congress.
Under questioning from Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Mueller also reiterated that he did not "totally exonerate" Trump, saying this is "not what the report said." These early remarks came after Trump tweeted about Mueller's testimony eight times prior to its start, including by writing, "NO COLLUSION, NO OBSTRUCTION." Later in his testimony, Mueller rejected the idea that "collusion" and "conspiracy" are synonymous terms. Brendan Morrow
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