Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller is maintaining that his investigation team did not have the authority to indict a sitting president, citing an opinion from the Office of Legal Counsel. But he did leave the door open for the future.
During Mueller's testimony before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, committee chair Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) asked Mueller if it was true that even if he had concluded President Trump had obstructed his office's investigation into 2016 Russian election interference, the special counsel could not have publicly stated so because of the OLC opinion. Mueller confirmed.
But he also confirmed that a president could be prosecuted for an alleged crime after leaving office.
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Of course, Mueller was likely not hinting at anything other than establishing his interpretation of the legal opinion. It does mean, however, that no matter how this situation resolves in the present moment, it could crop up again in the future.
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