The joint letter came from two officials in charge of public relations, Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec and spokesman for the special counsel’s office Peter Carr. Nothing in the letter “straightened out” anything that Mueller had said. It was simply a carefully worded way of papering over what Barr had said. Which it did through the muddiest of water-muddying efforts. Compare these two statements:
One: “The Attorney General has previously stated that the Special Counsel repeatedly affirmed that he was not saying that, but for the [Office of Legal Counsel] opinion, he would have found the President obstructed justice ...”
Two: “The Special Counsel’s report and his statement today made clear that the office concluded it would not reach a determination—one way or the other—about whether the President committed a crime. There is no conflict between these statements.”
Far straightening things out, what the second statement says is exactly the opposite of what the first statement says. As Mueller said in person to Barr, in the report, and behind the lectern at the Justice Department, he did not feel that the rules allowed him either to indict Trump or even to accuse him of a crime. His understanding from the beginning of the investigation was that it was his task to bring evidence before the Congress for its consideration.
Mueller hasn’t testified. He didn’t need to correct anything in his public statement. And Donald Trump got everything dead wrong.
Also worth noting: Notable bone-spur survivor Trump made these comments against the backdrop of a Normandy cemetery on D-Day, demeaning a Marine veteran who has a Purple Heart and two awards for valor under fire.
All of which is, sadly, completely as expected.
Comments are closed on this story.