GOP Rep. John Ratcliffe's intense Mueller questioning may have been an audition for President Trump

John Ratcliffe.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) might have some career ambitions on his mind.

Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller testified for the House on Wednesday, largely deferring questions from both parties back to his report on Russian interference in the 2016 election. That deference lead Ratcliffe to go on a rant against Mueller, intensely asking him to name a time when an "investigated person was not exonerated because their innocence was not conclusively determined."

Ratcliffe's questioning pertained to the second half of Mueller's report, which outlined several instances where President Trump may have tried to obstruct Mueller's probe but did not recommend that Trump be charged with obstruction of justice. Mueller has repeatedly said that his report did not exonerate Trump of obstruction, prompting Ratcliffe to speak for much of his allotted time on why he thought Mueller was wrong.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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
See more

While other members of the House Judiciary Committee are known for their grandstanding questioning during hearings, Ratcliffe isn't one of them. But as Politico's Natasha Bertrand pointed out during the hearing, Ratcliffe "is among the names being floated for Director of National intelligence. A recent Axios report indicated Trump is "eager" to fire current director Dan Coats, suggesting Ratcliffe is trying to get on Trump's good side.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Kathryn Krawczyk

Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.