Legacy of Mueller inquiry will be an even more divided America
Notion that Democrats may take up where investigation left off is politically risky for the party
March 3rd, 2019: US president Donald Trump on Saturday (March 2) attacked US Special Counsel Robert Mueller ahead of his report on alleged Russia collusion by the Trump campaign in 2016 and said his political opponents were "trying to take me out with bullshit."
Almost two years after Robert Mueller began his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, the probe which has overshadowed Donald Trump’s presidency has come to an end. Last Sunday, attorney general Bill Barr submitted a four-page summary of Mr Mueller’s investigation to Congress. On the issue of collusion, the conclusion was unequivocal – the special counsel found that there was no collusion or conspiracy between Trump’s circle and Russia.
On the question of obstruction of justice, the findings are more ambiguous. According to Mr Barr’s summary of the Mueller report, the special counsel “does not conclude that the president committed a crime”. But it also does not exonerate him. Instead, Mr Barr and his attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, decided that the evidence collected by Mueller was “not sufficient to establish that the President committed an obstruction-of-justice offense”.