Key Democrat lawmakers who triumphantly announced that Robert Mueller will testify under subpoena next month about his report on alleged Russian collusion may have played right into Republican hands, several legal and political experts told Fox News.
With the former special counsel set to testify on July 17 to the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees, both controlled by Democrats, President Trump’s most vocal critics hope to have the legendary lawman spell out the commander-in-chief’s misdeeds in sound bites that could fuel an impeachment drive. But given that Mueller ultimately found no evidence the Trump campaign colluded with Russia, and his pledge to not deviate from the 448-page report made public in April, the hearing may backfire.
“The bottom line is, after all of your looking and all the time you had and all the money you spent, did Trump collude with the Russians? No – Do you stand by your report? – Yes,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity late Monday. “It is ‘case-closed’ for me. They can do anything they want to in the House, and I think it will blow up in their face.”
Is Cuba next on Trump’s regime-change agenda
House Democrats eye four GOP-held Pennsylvania seats in majority quest
Watch: Startling Megyn Kelly Comments – Is She Getting Friendly With Islam Too?
Man against machine: Stories from Ukraine’s Donbas front line
Ex-Reality TV Star Exposes LA Mayor Over Wildfire Disaster to Her Face Mid-Debate
US intel community agreed before war ‘Iran wasn’t developing a nuclear weapon’: ex-counterterrorism chief
California county finds nearly 600 unopened ballots months after Newsom-backed redistricting measure passed
Trump motorcade drives across Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to inspect renovation efforts
Trump praises Susie Wiles’ cancer fight in surprise gala video: ‘Winning it decisively’
Trump takes motorcade into Reflecting Pool, blasts past ‘$38M disaster’ fix under Obama
Man indicted for allegedly posting gruesome death threats against Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi on social media
Paralyzed subway victim confronts attacker, calls his actions ‘evil’ at sentencing
EMT Students Snap Into Action When They Realize Instructor Isn’t Acting During Training Exercise: ‘OK, This Is Real’
State Department set to revoke passports of thousands of parents with unpaid child support debt
Prominent Democratic Mayor Announces Unexpected Resignation 6 Months After Re-Election
In his report, Mueller declined to reach a conclusion as to whether Trump obstructed justice during the investigation, citing a longstanding Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Although Attorney General William Barr, together with then-Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein then concluded that Trump did not obstruct justice, critics of Trump believe the report is replete with examples of obstruction that could propel impeachment and even post-presidency prosecution.
Robert Mueller has agreed to testify before Congress pursuant to subpoena.
Russia attacked our democracy to help Trump win. Trump welcomed and used that help. As Mueller said, that should concern every American.
And now, every American will get to hear directly from Mueller.
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) June 26, 2019
Is Cuba next on Trump’s regime-change agenda
House Democrats eye four GOP-held Pennsylvania seats in majority quest
Watch: Startling Megyn Kelly Comments – Is She Getting Friendly With Islam Too?
Man against machine: Stories from Ukraine’s Donbas front line
Ex-Reality TV Star Exposes LA Mayor Over Wildfire Disaster to Her Face Mid-Debate
US intel community agreed before war ‘Iran wasn’t developing a nuclear weapon’: ex-counterterrorism chief
California county finds nearly 600 unopened ballots months after Newsom-backed redistricting measure passed
Trump motorcade drives across Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to inspect renovation efforts
Trump praises Susie Wiles’ cancer fight in surprise gala video: ‘Winning it decisively’
Trump takes motorcade into Reflecting Pool, blasts past ‘$38M disaster’ fix under Obama
Man indicted for allegedly posting gruesome death threats against Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi on social media
Paralyzed subway victim confronts attacker, calls his actions ‘evil’ at sentencing
EMT Students Snap Into Action When They Realize Instructor Isn’t Acting During Training Exercise: ‘OK, This Is Real’
State Department set to revoke passports of thousands of parents with unpaid child support debt
Prominent Democratic Mayor Announces Unexpected Resignation 6 Months After Re-Election
Republicans on the two panels will get their chance to query Mueller about the dubious basis for federal surveillance warrants used to spy on Trump associates, what initially prompted the FBI probe that preceded Mueller’s investigation and, perhaps the biggest question of all: At what point during his nearly-two year probe did Mueller determine Trump did not collude with Russians.
“He can’t refuse to answer questions about the FISA application,” Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz told Fox News Channel’s Laura Ingraham, referring to a request by the FBI to surveil a member of the 2016 Trump campaign under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
“Those are the kind of questions that I think Republicans will be very well prepared to ask,” Dershowitz added. “Those are the kind of questions which are currently under investigation by the inspector general whose report we are waiting for. But those are not in any way precluded. So I think that they will regret having called him.”
Both committees were taken over by Democrats when the party retook the House majority in the 2018 midterm elections. They are chaired by two of Trump’s biggest adversaries, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., of the Judiciary Committee and Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., of the Intelligence Committee. But both are stacked with able Republicans, including former federal prosecutor and Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe, Rep. Devin Nunes, of California, who previously chaired the Intel Committee and who, as a member of the “Gang of Eight” has seen key evidence still not made public.
Is Cuba next on Trump’s regime-change agenda
House Democrats eye four GOP-held Pennsylvania seats in majority quest
Watch: Startling Megyn Kelly Comments – Is She Getting Friendly With Islam Too?
Man against machine: Stories from Ukraine’s Donbas front line
Ex-Reality TV Star Exposes LA Mayor Over Wildfire Disaster to Her Face Mid-Debate
US intel community agreed before war ‘Iran wasn’t developing a nuclear weapon’: ex-counterterrorism chief
California county finds nearly 600 unopened ballots months after Newsom-backed redistricting measure passed
Trump motorcade drives across Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to inspect renovation efforts
Trump praises Susie Wiles’ cancer fight in surprise gala video: ‘Winning it decisively’
Trump takes motorcade into Reflecting Pool, blasts past ‘$38M disaster’ fix under Obama
Man indicted for allegedly posting gruesome death threats against Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi on social media
Paralyzed subway victim confronts attacker, calls his actions ‘evil’ at sentencing
EMT Students Snap Into Action When They Realize Instructor Isn’t Acting During Training Exercise: ‘OK, This Is Real’
State Department set to revoke passports of thousands of parents with unpaid child support debt
Prominent Democratic Mayor Announces Unexpected Resignation 6 Months After Re-Election
Ratcliff is a member of both committees, and is joined on Judiciary by Trump supporters Rep. Louie Gohmert, a former Texas judge; Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., who has used his position to release closed-door testimony of several witnesses from the FBI and Department of Justice.
“Bob Mueller better be prepared,” Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., a leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, told Ingraham. “Because I can tell you, he will be cross-examined for the first time and the American people will start to see the flaws in his report.”
Schiff told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow that the subpoena was necessary because Mueller “did not want to testify.”
“Nonetheless, they will respect the subpoena,” Schiff said. “He will appear. He’ll be testifying before our committee in open session. Each of our members will have an opportunity to ask questions of the special counsel. And the American people get a chance to hear directly from him and have their questions answered. So I think it’s a good result.”
Fox News contributor Geraldo Rivera said Schiff and Nadler may come to regret forcing Mueller to answer questions.
“I think that the price that this testimony will cost the Democrats will be grievous to them,” Rivera said. “They will rue the day that Nadler and Schiff let their ambition get ahead of their common sense, their political science, and drag this man back into center stage of the American public.”
Story cited here.
