Mueller report is an admission of the 'depth of Trump's ignorance': 10 best reader responses so far
Special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation detailed an extensive Russian campaign to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, but did not find evidence that President Donald Trump or his aides participated in those efforts, Attorney General William Barr said Thursday. Our readers shared their thoughts:
So according to the Mueller report, Trump was too ignorant to know that what he did was criminal, and that Russia reaching out to him was not a compliment to his leadership, but a global admission of the depth of his ignorance ... OK.
— Adina Hall
Yeah, the report found no concrete evidence of collusion (coordination), nothing criminal in that sense. But there was plenty in the report to remind us that politics is a dirty game, and so is business.
I think the Mueller report shows how desperate Democrats are to find something, anything, to pin on Trump — and they have been unsuccessful so far. If Democrats keep this up, it will guarantee Trump's reelection. At some point, you have to stop and attempt to govern.
— Bill Baker
After watching Trump's performance for over two years, I know what I think of him. Since it's apparent that no action will be taken by Congress in response to the report, why should I care what's in it?
No criminal conspiracy ... it just means Trump's campaign was unwittingly used as "useful idiots" by Russian operatives. I'm sure that if President Barack Obama had done the same, Republicans would have been fine with it. It looks like they love mother Russia.
— John Coleman
What is there to say other than the Trump administration continues to get away with their wrongdoing, and Trump will continue escaping justice like he always has. This is basically business as usual for him.
Wouldn't you be angry if there was an investigation into your campaign and you specifically? I know I would! Democrats have been on Trump's back from the very beginning. Enough is enough!
— Lola Freeney
It doesn't matter what the Mueller report says. Liberals are too brainwashed to accept facts or reality. They already see this as a "coup." Until we start treating liberals like the cult that they are, don't expect anything to improve.
This is tribulation. I think Trump is guilty as sin. He tried to pull a Saturday Night Massacre! I want to know more about the WikiLeaks stuff that has been redacted off of the Mueller report. Just because Donald Trump Jr. was too ignorant to know he was being manipulated by the Russians doesn't mean that what he did was right. There was collusion, in my opinion. They might not have known the Russian government was behind it, but they knew the people offering help were up to no good!
— Gabe Topp
Hold up, for a guy who's now claiming "no obstruction, no collusion" to be have been reportedly worried at the beginning of this investigation that it was going to "end his presidency," it sure sounds like there was something to hide. Why would one say this if there was clearly no wrongdoing? I don't care which side of the aisle you're on, but you cannot deny that is fishy.
— Ryan Taylor
r/politics
Volume II, page 158: "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." Jesus.
This is what has people so concerned about whether justice applies to the president. President Donald Trump rather clearly stated an illegal motive for firing FBI Director James Comey on national television, and he hasn't been charged with a crime.
The president fired the man investigating him for crimes! Trump committed a crime to cover up other crimes. That he isn't being treated like a criminal is maddening. The public is rightly upset about it, because if he somehow goes unpunished for this, it’s the clearest example that the rich and powerful are above the law — and I feel like America can't live with that anymore.
Special counsel Robert Mueller's office says they weighed charging Trump with obstruction, but didn't in part because "we recognized that a federal criminal accusation against a sitting President would place burdens on the President’s capacity to govern and potentially preempt constitutional process for addressing presidential misconduct."
The Mueller report proved that Russia did interfere in the election to the detriment of Hillary Clinton and the benefit of Trump.
Since Trump was not knowingly involved with this that means he was the unwitting patsy the Russians thought they could easily manipulate.
So the Mueller report says there's no proof that Trump was actively cooperating with the Russians illegal activity. The Russians were helping him and Trump even retweeted some of their efforts to help him, but no evidence that he knew it was foreign influence. So Trump was fooled by Russians, as his supporters were.
In terms of obstruction the case is pretty much laid out. The decision whether to do anything about it falls to Congress. As the report says, if they had confidence he didn't commit obstruction they would have said so, but they do not have that confidence.
So in conclusion: no proof of collusion, lots of evidence of obstruction.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mueller report is an admission of the 'depth of Trump's ignorance': 10 best reader responses so far
