| | | | It just got harder for Democrats not to impeach Trump |  | | Robert Mueller ended his two-year stint as special counsel with a bang disguised as a whimper: In a 10-minute statement announcing his resignation and the closure of the special counsel's office, the former FBI director sent a very clear message to anyone listening: I didn't charge Donald Trump with obstruction because I couldn't.
"The Special Counsel's Office is part of the Department of Justice and, by regulation, it was bound by that Department policy," said Mueller, referencing an Office of Legal Counsel ruling that a siting president cannot be indicted. "Charging the President with a crime was therefore not an option we could consider."
And just in case you missed what Mueller was driving at with that quote, he was even more explicit later in his remarks. "The [OLC] opinion says that the Constitution requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing," Mueller added.
So, to summarize:
1) Mueller says the special counsel's hands were tied by the OLC opinion when it came to charging Trump with obstructing the Russia probe.
2) Mueller notes that "the Constitution requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing."
Oh, whatever could he mean????
To date, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has held off the increasing number of voices within the House Democratic caucus calling for impeachment, insisting that Trump wants to be impeached because it will turn him into a victim and allow him to make the election about alleged Democratic overreach rather than about health care, immigration and so on.
It's a sound political stance -- one reinforced by CNN polling that shows that almost 6 in 10 Americans don't want to see Trump impeached and more than 4 in 10 who think Democrats have already done too much investigating of the President.
But polling doesn't stand in for principle or political pressure. And Pelosi is going to be strongly pushed on both of those fronts now that Mueller said what he said. The question is whether -- and how -- she can withstand this increased pressure.
In a statement soon after what may be Mueller's final appearance on the national stage, Pelosi stood her ground, emphasizing that it's just a fraction of the total number of House Democrats calling for impeachment. "I think it's like 35 of them out of 238, maybe it's 38 of them out of 238 who have said they wanted to be outspoken on impeachment," she said.
"Nothing is off the table," Pelosi added. But "we are investigating and we are litigating and we are going to, as we go down the path, make a decision based on the strongest possible case to get the best results for the American people."
The Point: Pelosi is holding strong -- for now. But how long can she keep it up in the wake of the Mueller statement?
-- Chris | | "If we had had confidence that the President had clearly not committed a crime, we would have said so."
-- Robert Mueller making his first, and he said hopefully only, public comments on the Russia investigation. | | | We have new guidance on who from the large field of Democrats will be able to qualify for the third and fourth DNC-sponsored debates coming this fall.
The new (and likely harder to meet) requirements for the September and October debate: Candidates must hit 2% in four qualifying polls AND receive 130,000 individual donors, including 400 unique donors per state in at least 20 US states.
The criteria will likely help winnow the massive field for the third and fourth debates, after 20(!) candidates will crowd the stage over two days in both June and July.
| | | Today's topic: Surprise ... Mueller speaks! | | Robert Mueller's full statement is worth reading. Carefully.
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Look: Prince was a genius. End of discussion. | | | To celebrate Pride Month, Sufjan Stevens released two new songs! | | Roy Moore, the Alabama Republican who ran a deeply flawed campaign and lost a Senate special election in December 2017 to Democrat Doug Jones, is considering running again.
But the President, after endorsing Moore in the last race, and his allies are NOT enthused that he may take another shot at the Senate seat -- and are very publicly making that clear.
"If you actually care about #MAGA more than your own ego, it's time to ride off into the sunset, Judge," Donald Trump Jr. tweeted this morning.
Moore, for now, says he won't be put off by the distancing from Trump world. | |
LAUREN'S CAMPAIGN TRAIL LATEST | | John Delaney: Is already pushing back on the DNC's requirements for the third and fourth debates.
Seth Moulton: Has rolled out a military health proposal while disclosing his own PTSD diagnosis.
Elizabeth Warren: Intervened in an Iowa resident's mobile home dispute over a rent spike.
Beto O'Rourke: Has a plan for immigration that would end family separations and deal with Dreamers.
Cory Booker: Is now among the 2020 Democrats calling for Trump's impeachment. | | | | | | |
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