WASHINGTON, DC - After a nearly two-year investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia, the results are in: No collusion. Those two words echoed through Washington Sunday, but as with many things in DC, the division is already growing.
US Attorney General William Barr released his principal conclusions of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation Sunday.
The president expressed exoneration, repeating the phrase he's said for more than a year: No obstruction, No collusion.
He celebrated the news with - what else? - a tweet:
No Collusion, No Obstruction, Complete and Total EXONERATION. KEEP AMERICA GREAT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2019
But Democrats, led by House Judiciary Chair Jerry Nadler (D-NY) aren't convinced and want Attorney General Barr to testify before Congress.
In light of the very concerning discrepancies and final decision making at the Justice Department following the Special Counsel report, where Mueller did not exonerate the President, we will be calling Attorney General Barr in to testify before @HouseJudiciary in the near future.
— (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) March 24, 2019
"Attorney General Barr, who auditioned for his role with an open memorandum suggesting that the obstruction investigation was unconscionable and that it was almost impossible for any president to commit obstruction of justice since he is the head of the executive branch, made a decision about that evidence in under 48 hours," Nadler said.
Barr's principal conclusions of Mueller's report are broken into two questions:
- Did the Trump campaign collude with the Russians during the 2016 election?
- And did the president commit obstruction of justice?
When it comes to collusion, Barr states, "The special counsel's investigation did not find that the Trump campaign or anyone associated with it conspired or coordinated with Russia in its efforts to influence the election."
On the issue of obstruction he writes, "The special counsel states that while this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him."
But Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein come to their own conclusion that "the evidence developed during the special counsel's investigation is not sufficient to establish that the president committed an obstruction-of-justice offense."
That overall investigation is the result of 22 months of work by 19 lawyers, 40 FBI agents, and includes 2,800 subpoenas, 500 search warrants, 13 requests to foreign governments, and 500 witness interviews.
Still, Democrats say they're concerned about Barr's partiality and vow to continue investigations into the president.
Republicans say it's all an elaborate plan for impeachment.
"If anyone thinks that the Mueller Report being concluded is the end of the Democrats' attempt to take down President Trump, they haven't been paying attention the last two years," Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on CNN's "State of the Union."
One point of unity here in Washington is that politicians from both sides of the aisle say they want Barr to release the full report so the American people can see for themselves. Barr says he wants to release as much of the report as he can, but he's consulting with the special counsel on what can be released, a process that could take some time.
WATCH CBN's David Brody: Media Gave Trump a Gift, Mueller Report Is Cherry on Top of the 'Fake News Sundae'
Did you know?
God is everywhere—even in the news. That’s why we view every news story through the lens of faith. We are committed to delivering quality independent Christian journalism you can trust. But it takes a lot of hard work, time, and money to do what we do. Help us continue to be a voice for truth in the media by supporting CBN News for as little as $1.
Support CBN News
