Mueller didn’t accuse Trump of a crime, in large part, because he didn’t think he could — and not necessarily because the evidence was so inconclusive. That’s hugely significant, because it takes some sting out of the argument that Mueller didn’t find a crime — or, as Trump has claimed, “totally exonerated” him. The Mueller report summarizes it thusly: “The President’s efforts to influence the investigation were mostly unsuccessful, but that is largely because the persons who surrounded the President declined to carry out orders or accede to his requests.”Ouch. That has allowed Trump to argue to his supporters that the stories were wrong, totally made-up “fake news.”Except now many of them have been confirmed by the Mueller report. For another, Trump claimed he never asked McGahn to fire Mueller, but Mueller details how he did.

Source: Washington Post April 18, 2019 16:37 UTC