Explainer: Mueller says no collusion. Barr says no obstruction. What's next for Trump?

[webfact]

Explainer: Mueller says no collusion. Barr says no obstruction. What's next for Trump?

By Andy Sullivan

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump arrives for a signing ceremony for H.R. 2, the "Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018" in Washington, U.S., December 20, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Young

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Special Counsel Robert Mueller has concluded that nobody associated with President Donald Trump's campaign "conspired or knowingly coordinated" with Russia during the 2016 presidential election, and U.S. Attorney General William Barr says he does not see enough evidence to charge Trump with obstruction of justice.

 

But that does not necessarily mean Trump is in the clear - he still faces multiple investigations into his business and other aspects of his political campaign, and Democrats are launching a wave of probes from Capitol Hill.

 

Following are some possible next steps as Washington continues to wrestle over Russia's role in the election, the conduct of Mueller's investigation and other aspects of the Trump-Russia saga.

 

HOW MUCH OF MUELLER'S REPORT CAN BE MADE PUBLIC?

Barr said he wants to release as much of Mueller's report as he can, as long as it does not undermine legal proceedings that should be kept secret, such as grand jury interviews, or interfere with other ongoing investigations. He is now going through the report to determine what can be released.

 

Democrats are pressing Barr to release the entire report so they can draw their own conclusions. If he does not do so, expect a protracted tug-of-war that could end up in court.

 

THE QUESTION OF OBSTRUCTION

Foremost on Democrats' minds is whether Trump obstructed justice by interfering with Mueller's probe and other investigations.

 

Barr says he did not, but he adds that Mueller presented evidence on both sides of the question. Democrats will press for access to Mueller's full report - as well as the underlying evidence he collected over the course of an investigation that interviewed 500 witnesses and issued more than 2,800 subpoenas.

 

The Democratic chairs of six House of Representatives committees said on Friday they expected that evidence to be turned over on request to their panels, which cover everything from taxes to banking.

 

The House Judiciary Committee is also expected to continue its own investigation into alleged obstruction of justice after requesting documents from 81 people and organizations several weeks ago.

 

TRUMP'S ALLIES SAY IT'S TIME TO MOVE ON - OR MAYBE NOT

The Russia probe has dogged Trump's presidency from his first months in office. Trump allies say it is now time to move on and focus on substantive issues like trade and the economy.

 

But some of Trump's biggest supporters on Capitol Hill do not want to put the issue to rest just yet.

 

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, a Republican, has said he wants to investigate whether top officials at the Justice Department discussed forcing Trump from office, and is pressing the FBI to hand over documents relating to their surveillance of Carter Page, a foreign policy adviser on Trump's election team.

 

BARR ON THE HILL

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat, said he planned to ask Barr to testify before his committee to explain why he thought Trump should not be charged with obstruction of justice.

 

Many Democrats are already suspicious of Barr's views on the issue. As a private lawyer, Barr wrote an unsolicited memo to the Justice Department last year arguing that Mueller's obstruction inquiry was "fatally misconceived" and saying that presidents have "all-encompassing" authority over law enforcement investigations, even those that relate to him directly.

 

Barr's views of presidential power are relevant not only when it comes to obstruction of justice but other issues like how much the administration is required to cooperate with congressional investigators - which will be a key issue over the next two years.

 

Barr faced pointed questions from Democrats during his January confirmation hearing. Any session devoted to obstruction of justice and presidential powers could be much more contentious.

 

MUELLER SPEAKS?

Mueller has not spoken publicly over the course of the 22-month investigation, but that might change now that his work is done.

 

Nadler and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff have said they may try to get him to testify in front of Congress. The questioning might be relatively polite - as a former FBI director and decorated Vietnam War veteran, Mueller is one of the most respected people in Washington.

 

But his testimony may not be that revealing. Mueller has cultivated a reputation as a scrupulous prosecutor, and he may not be willing to discuss evidence or reach conclusions not contained in his report. Also, as special prosecutor, he is required to defer to Barr as to what can be disclosed to the public.

 

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Ross Colvin and Peter Cooney)

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-03-25

[Chomper Higgot]

Publish the report.

 

Then we’ll see what next.

[dcutman]

Whats next for Trump?

 

Second term as president is whats next.

[sanemax]

2 minutes ago, dcutman said:

Whats next for Trump?

 

Second term as president is whats next.

Lets just hope that Uri Geller does say that hes going to send telegraphic messages to get Trump re-elected .

   *Israels colludes with Trump to get him elected* , would cause more problems than it would help

[direction BANGKOK]

I have no problem with presidents being compelled to release returns in all future elections. That would have probably precluded all of this mess. 

[KMartinHandyman]

Collusion is not a crime. Colluding with Russia to influence an election would be conspiracy and that’s a crime. Mueller, Rosenstein and Barr found neither collusion or conspiracy.
Obstruction of justice is a crime and exercising your authority over the executive branch is not a crime. Seems it would be hard to press obstruction charges when there was no underlying “there there” which the fbi’s Peter Paul Strzok II knew almost three years ago.
Roger L. Simon at pjmedia recently wrote this:
SPECIAL TO ADAM SCHIFF: You represent Los Angeles, where people are defecating in the streets and living in tents. Why don't you try to do something about that instead of lying every day about Donald Trump?
The democratic socialists new dream for America will be first in line for toilet paper [emoji3474].

[usviphotography]

Flynn pardon if he is smart and then aggressive moves against the Deep State. But wouldn't be surprised if we get nothing more than a few pathetic Tweets. 

[Chomper Higgot]

1 minute ago, KMartinHandyman said:

Collusion is not a crime. Colluding with Russia to influence an election would be conspiracy and that’s a crime. Mueller, Rosenstein and Barr found neither collusion or conspiracy.
Obstruction of justice is a crime and exercising your authority over the executive branch is not a crime. Seems it would be hard to press obstruction charges when there was no underlying “there there” which the fbi’s Peter Paul Strzok II knew almost three years ago.
Roger L. Simon at pjmedia recently wrote this:
SPECIAL TO ADAM SCHIFF: You represent Los Angeles, where people are defecating in the streets and living in tents. Why don't you try to do something about that instead of lying every day about Donald Trump?
The democratic socialists new dream for America will be first in line for toilet paper .

You only have the word of Trump’s hand picked AG for that.

 

The Mueller report remains secret.

[TopDeadSenter]

What next for Trump? Well seeing as 2020 is in the bag already (thanks Dems and deep state) I suppose he can chill out and play more golf with Kid Rock and his mates.  6 years is heaps of time to secure the southern border, sort out the fake news outlets and continue with all his economy successes. Just a great time to be alive to see this all happening. Go Trump!

[KMartinHandyman]

Flynn pardon if he is smart and then aggressive moves against the Deep State. But wouldn't be surprised if we get nothing more than a few pathetic Tweets. 

Hopefully Barr goes after the deep state. Trump should hold off pardons until after the 2020 election and then he can issue pardon for Flynn if he wins or loses before leaving office.

[roobaa01]

now investigations about hillary and obamas involvments in the 2016 campaign as well as the anti-trump fake dossier. appointment of a hillary clinton special counsel to probe her russin collusion.

wbr

roobaa01

[Thaidream]

It's good to know that Donald Trump is not a Russian agent or collaborates with them.  Whether he obstructs justice or not is to be left to the opinion of the American people.  without conclusive evidence- I will give him a pass but there are way too many other things that will cause his defeat in 2020

 

1.  He is violation of the emoluments clause of the Us Constitution- he us using the Presidency to enrich

h himself and his family- how many trips to Mar A Logo does it take where his large entourage stays at his hotel and the US Government gets billed billions does it take to show this?

 

2. Once his tax returns are  shown to the World , we will see the amounts of Russian money purchase Trump properties at inflated prices and these inflated prices being poured into his Company to keep it afloat.  His many bankruptcies  would not allow him to borrow funds but the Russians are happy to support him economically. 

 

3.  Trump's policies are placing the US in a position of being strongly disliked by our allies to include all of NATO; Canada and Mexico/  With the complexity of the World- America needs friends. We do not need a huge increase in the military budget while  our citizens are forced  to abide by a federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hours and our citizens have to go bankrupt because they can't pay outlandish medical and pharmaceutical bills..

 

4.  As far as his tax cut- I just don't know where I will spend my extra $2.00 per day that his tax bill has provided for the Middle Class while the wealthy have received breaks that will provide them millions .

 

5.   Trump's  Immigration policies are not only cruel but simply incompetent.  I guess  separating children from their parents; locking them in cages, and then deporting the parents while the children languish in the 'system' somehow translates to border protection but the majority of people aren't buying into it.

 

The point is that  even if he never spoke to a Russian; obstructed justice or had Russian hookers in his Moscow Hotel -he is still a completely incompetent President and will never be re-elected. He has done nothing for the average American; done nothing to bring Americans together as a people and is reviled by the World.

[Basil B]

1 hour ago, sanemax said:

Lets just hope that Uri Geller does say that hes going to send telegraphic messages to get Trump re-elected .

   *Israels colludes with Trump to get him elected* , would cause more problems than it would help

Well it worked on 17.4 Million Brits...

[jimmyyy]

I said over a year ago on TV that this would be the result, it was a witch hunt, and I was ran out of the thread for being racist scum who supports trump, guess what I was right and trump will be reelected just as i predicted as well.  Enjoy the show, the democrats are going to suffer greatly.  I for one shall enjoy the show.

[roobaa01]

1 hour ago, Chomper Higgot said:

You only have the word of Trump’s hand picked AG for that.

 

The Mueller report remains secret.

well and abraham lincoln will be resurrected.

 

wbr

roobaa01

[Paul Henry]

Trump allies say its now time to move on and focus onsubstansive issues like trade and the economy.

They left out Trumps main focus as POTUS thats Golf at his club.The hippocrit lambasted Obama for playing golf and now he plays 3 times more than OBAMA. More hippocrasy from this bullshit artist.

[tlandtday]

500 witness.... 2800 subpoenas.... how many millions wasted? 

 

Nothing but obstructionism plain and simple.  Someone in power does not like the guy the American people duly ELECTED and has spent two years in a dog and pony show trying to take him down.  Not my idea of how a democracy should work.

[roobaa01]

10 minutes ago, tlandtday said:

500 witness.... 2800 subpoenas.... how many millions wasted? 

 

Nothing but obstructionism plain and simple.  Someone in power does not like the guy the American people duly ELECTED and has spent two years in a dog and pony show trying to take him down.  Not my idea of how a democracy should work.

usd $ 27 million wasted in tax payer money and the dems damage done to the country.

but dem socialist are great in wasting other peoples` money.

 

wbr

roobaa01

 

wbr

[Hogs]

OH Dear the poor Trump haters still got nothing 

Must be really stressful no wonder they need safe spaces LOL 

[Hogs]

27 minutes ago, Paul Henry said:

Trump allies say its now time to move on and focus onsubstansive issues like trade and the economy.

They left out Trumps main focus as POTUS thats Golf at his club.The hippocrit lambasted Obama for playing golf and now he plays 3 times more than OBAMA. More hippocrasy from this bullshit artist.

And does 5 times the amount of work in a day than Obama ever did 

Trump is a known workaholic as evidenced by the HUGE workload he take on with few hours sleep 

If he wants to play golf he deserves a little time off from a hectic schedule where he earns NOTHING for his efforts as he donates 100% of his salary to Veterans and Border control and charity UNLIKE Obama.

 

 

[Hogs]

3 hours ago, Thaidream said:

It's good to know that Donald Trump is not a Russian agent or collaborates with them.  Whether he obstructs justice or not is to be left to the opinion of the American people.  without conclusive evidence- I will give him a pass but there are way too many other things that will cause his defeat in 2020

 

1.  He is violation of the emoluments clause of the Us Constitution- he us using the Presidency to enrich

h himself and his family- how many trips to Mar A Logo does it take where his large entourage stays at his hotel and the US Government gets billed billions does it take to show this?

 

2. Once his tax returns are  shown to the World , we will see the amounts of Russian money purchase Trump properties at inflated prices and these inflated prices being poured into his Company to keep it afloat.  His many bankruptcies  would not allow him to borrow funds but the Russians are happy to support him economically. 

 

3.  Trump's policies are placing the US in a position of being strongly disliked by our allies to include all of NATO; Canada and Mexico/  With the complexity of the World- America needs friends. We do not need a huge increase in the military budget while  our citizens are forced  to abide by a federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hours and our citizens have to go bankrupt because they can't pay outlandish medical and pharmaceutical bills..

 

4.  As far as his tax cut- I just don't know where I will spend my extra $2.00 per day that his tax bill has provided for the Middle Class while the wealthy have received breaks that will provide them millions .

 

5.   Trump's  Immigration policies are not only cruel but simply incompetent.  I guess  separating children from their parents; locking them in cages, and then deporting the parents while the children languish in the 'system' somehow translates to border protection but the majority of people aren't buying into it.

 

The point is that  even if he never spoke to a Russian; obstructed justice or had Russian hookers in his Moscow Hotel -he is still a completely incompetent President and will never be re-elected. He has done nothing for the average American; done nothing to bring Americans together as a people and is reviled by the World.

You poor guy 

I am sure you are gutted the Mueller report cleared Trump and now you are setting yourself up for even MORE disappointment thinking he will lose the 2020 election.

The 2020 is in the Bag already get used to it you can keep on believing in fairytales or realize Trump is one of the most successful Presidents in the history of the USA and will go down as one of the best Presidents ever.

Keep on digging you might eventually find something but us trump supporters dont care about his taxes (hopefully it will show zero paid showing he had a superb tax accountant) its another nothing burger just like Muellers 2 year investigation.

   

[JHolmesJr]

Shifty Schiff and Jerry Gonad-ler...what a bunch of clueless clowns...still flailing and tilting at windmills.

 

Sancho Panza had more poise than these two goons.

 

 

[connda]

5 hours ago, dcutman said:

Whats next for Trump?

 

Second term as president is whats next.

Lordy.  Another group weep fest and melt-down.  Four more years to ignoring issues while attempting to sabotage the Presidency.

Wanna beat Trump -- then stick to the issues that the Democratic base supports.  Not the Democratic fringe, but the Democratic base including Independents.  But, keep beating the same drum and focusing on pushing the guy out of office as opposed to debating real issues -- and Trump is in for another four years. 

[farcanell]

28 minutes ago, connda said:

Wanna beat Trump -- then stick to the issues that the Democratic base supports.  Not the Democratic fringe, but the Democratic base including Independents.  But, keep beating the same drum and focusing on pushing the guy out of office as opposed to debating real issues -- and Trump is in for another four years. 

Debating real issues would be good.... but .... trump doesn’t debate real issues. Unfortunately for the dems, they need to find a dick dastardly of their own, to adopt trump style assaults on opponents, vs appealing to the intelligence of the electorate.

[Thingamabob]

5 hours ago, Thaidream said:

It's good to know that Donald Trump is not a Russian agent or collaborates with them.  Whether he obstructs justice or not is to be left to the opinion of the American people.  without conclusive evidence- I will give him a pass but there are way too many other things that will cause his defeat in 2020

 

1.  He is violation of the emoluments clause of the Us Constitution- he us using the Presidency to enrich

h himself and his family- how many trips to Mar A Logo does it take where his large entourage stays at his hotel and the US Government gets billed billions does it take to show this?

 

2. Once his tax returns are  shown to the World , we will see the amounts of Russian money purchase Trump properties at inflated prices and these inflated prices being poured into his Company to keep it afloat.  His many bankruptcies  would not allow him to borrow funds but the Russians are happy to support him economically. 

 

3.  Trump's policies are placing the US in a position of being strongly disliked by our allies to include all of NATO; Canada and Mexico/  With the complexity of the World- America needs friends. We do not need a huge increase in the military budget while  our citizens are forced  to abide by a federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hours and our citizens have to go bankrupt because they can't pay outlandish medical and pharmaceutical bills..

 

4.  As far as his tax cut- I just don't know where I will spend my extra $2.00 per day that his tax bill has provided for the Middle Class while the wealthy have received breaks that will provide them millions .

 

5.   Trump's  Immigration policies are not only cruel but simply incompetent.  I guess  separating children from their parents; locking them in cages, and then deporting the parents while the children languish in the 'system' somehow translates to border protection but the majority of people aren't buying into it.

 

The point is that  even if he never spoke to a Russian; obstructed justice or had Russian hookers in his Moscow Hotel -he is still a completely incompetent President and will never be re-elected. He has done nothing for the average American; done nothing to bring Americans together as a people and is reviled by the World.

Not reviled generally. Get your facts straight.

[Mansell]

You Trumpeteers can have your little gloat......for now. And by the way, the American people didn't vote for him last time, more voted for Clinton. And in 2020 more will vote against him than for him. Even the brain dead supporters are starting to wake up and realize the guy is a flim flam man......all he's making great again are his family and a whole bunch of billionaires. Sleaze.

[tlandtday]

3 minutes ago, Mansell said:

You Trumpeteers can have your little gloat......for now. And by the way, the American people didn't vote for him last time, more voted for Clinton. And in 2020 more will vote against him than for him. Even the brain dead supporters are starting to wake up and realize the guy is a flim flam man......all he's making great again are his family and a whole bunch of billionaires. Sleaze.

Ever think this is not so much about Trump as it is about people trying to obstruct an elected president?  Why can't you just let the guy have his term in office and if he is half as terrible as people like you claim then he will surely not be elected. 

 

Billionaires lol... Trump isn't even taking a salary.... have you looked at Pelosi's bank account since she entered office?  Ever hear of Jeff Bezos owner of the Washington Post who is worth 140 billion and is doing anything in his power to disrupt Trump.  Ever hear of George Soros who has donated over 10 billion to support the agenda against Trump?  Either you are intentionally ignoring these facts or just plain uninformed.

[riclag]

6 minutes ago, Mansell said:

You Trumpeteers can have your little gloat......for now. And by the way, the American people didn't vote for him last time, more voted for Clinton. And in 2020 more will vote against him than for him. Even the brain dead supporters are starting to wake up and realize the guy is a flim flam man......all he's making great again are his family and a whole bunch of billionaires. Sleaze.

Whats next for Trump and his base after the announcement, I expect a huge bump on his approval

[skatewash]

6 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

You only have the word of Trump’s hand picked AG for that.

 

The Mueller report remains secret.

Maybe you're not familiar with the job of Attorney General in the US?  Can you give me the name of one during the nation's history which was not "hand-picked" by the President.

JFK picked his own brother. ????

 

[zydeco]

5 hours ago, Thaidream said:

It's good to know that Donald Trump is not a Russian agent or collaborates with them.  Whether he obstructs justice or not is to be left to the opinion of the American people.  without conclusive evidence- I will give him a pass but there are way too many other things that will cause his defeat in 2020

 

1.  He is violation of the emoluments clause of the Us Constitution- he us using the Presidency to enrich

h himself and his family- how many trips to Mar A Logo does it take where his large entourage stays at his hotel and the US Government gets billed billions does it take to show this?

 

2. Once his tax returns are  shown to the World , we will see the amounts of Russian money purchase Trump properties at inflated prices and these inflated prices being poured into his Company to keep it afloat.  His many bankruptcies  would not allow him to borrow funds but the Russians are happy to support him economically. 

 

3.  Trump's policies are placing the US in a position of being strongly disliked by our allies to include all of NATO; Canada and Mexico/  With the complexity of the World- America needs friends. We do not need a huge increase in the military budget while  our citizens are forced  to abide by a federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hours and our citizens have to go bankrupt because they can't pay outlandish medical and pharmaceutical bills..

 

4.  As far as his tax cut- I just don't know where I will spend my extra $2.00 per day that his tax bill has provided for the Middle Class while the wealthy have received breaks that will provide them millions .

 

5.   Trump's  Immigration policies are not only cruel but simply incompetent.  I guess  separating children from their parents; locking them in cages, and then deporting the parents while the children languish in the 'system' somehow translates to border protection but the majority of people aren't buying into it.

 

The point is that  even if he never spoke to a Russian; obstructed justice or had Russian hookers in his Moscow Hotel -he is still a completely incompetent President and will never be re-elected. He has done nothing for the average American; done nothing to bring Americans together as a people and is reviled by the World.

Except for what you say about immigration, yes. And don't forget to add in what he did to bully the Fed to freeze rates, stop QT, and get ready to start printing more money again. A $1 trillion dollar deficit this year. Great.