Washington, July 24 : Former US Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Wednesday defended the integrity of his Russia investigation during a dramatic congressional hearing and reiterated that he had not cleared President Donald Trump of obstruction of justice or, as the president has said, totally exonerated Trump.
Mueller appeared for eagerly anticipated testimony at the first of two back-to-back congressional hearings that carry high stakes for President Donald Trump and Democrats who are split between impeaching him or moving on to the 2020 election.
The former FBI director, who spent 22 months investigating Russian interference in the 2016 US election and Trump`s conduct, appeared first before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee.
The committee`s Democratic chairman, Jerrold Nadler, praised Mueller and said no one including Trump is “above the law.”
Mueller, 74, was surrounded by news photographers as he took his place in the packed hearing room, showing little apparent emotion as he scanned the scene.”Obstruction of justice strikes at the core of the government`s efforts to find the truth and to hold wrongdoers accountable,” Mueller testified.Trump has claimed that the Mueller inquiry resulted in the president`s “complete and total exoneration.” Asked by Nadler if he had exonerated Trump, Mueller said, “No.”
In a comment sure to disappoint Republicans, Mueller said he would not answer questions about the origins of the Russia probe in the FBI before he was named to take over the inquiry in 2017 or about a controversial dossier compiled by a former British intelligence agent Mueller was set to testify later in the day before the House Inteligence Committee. Democrats control the House, while Trump`s fellow Republicans control the Senate.Democrats entered the hearings hoping Mueller`s testimony would rally public support behind their own ongoing investigations of the president and his administration. Democrats are deeply divided over whether to launch the impeachment process set out in the US Constitution for removing a president from office for “high crimes and misdemeanors.”Mueller’s inquiry detailed numerous contacts between Trump`s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia at a time when the Kremlin was interfering in the 2016 US election with a scheme of hacking and propaganda to sow discord among Americans and boost Trump`s candidacy.
Mueller`s investigative report said the inquiry found insufficient evidence to establish that Trump and his campaign engaged in a criminal conspiracy with Russia. The report did not reach a conclusion on whether Trump committed the crime of obstruction of justice in a series of actions aimed at impeding the inquiry, but pointedly did not exonerate him. Attorney General William Barr, a Trump appointee, subsequently cleared the president of obstruction of justice.The Justice Department has a longstanding policy against bringing criminal charges against a sitting president.Nadler said in his opening statement that Mueller conducted the inquiry with “remarkable integrity” and was “subjected to repeated and grossly unfair personal attacks.”
