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The Mueller Testimony: What Comes Next
If you have read or listened to the Robert Mueller report, there were no surprises today. Democrats made the point, using the report, that the president is not above the law. Republicans attacked the legitimacy of the report.
This exchange between Chairman Jerry Nadler and Director Robert Mueller was emblematic. “Did you actually totally exonerate the president?” Robert Mueller: “No.” So no matter the victory lap later in the day, it was clear that the president was wrong, but President Donald Trump has lied so often that this seems to be the new normal.
Mueller was clear also that this may be the new normal. And this concerned him, deeply.
Let’s be clear on this critical point. Most Americans have not read the report. I understand why. It is dense, however well written it may be. Also, and this includes many members of the United States Congress, many have made their minds already. Reading the report may prove a bad thing if you are sure that the president did nothing wrong, or that the president is akin to a king. What is called the Unitary theory of the presidency or the imperial presidency. They are not the same, but they are close enough. Essentially this makes the president a king, for the duration of his mandate.
Out of all this, we had one moment that struck me as important. Director Mueller…