The special counsel investigation reported 10 episodes of possible obstruction-of-justice offenses allegedly committed by Trump, including the president’s failed efforts to fire Mueller.
“If we had had confidence the president clearly did not commit a crime we would have said so,” Mueller said.
Instead, Mueller said “the Constitution requires a process other than the criminal justice system to formally accuse a sitting president of wrongdoing.”.
But after Mueller told Barr he had not conducted such a thought experiment, Barr went ahead and did it himself.
Mueller said his investigation is complete and he would be closing his office and resigning from the Justice Department to “return to private life.”.
Then Mueller asked Barr to immediately release the 448-page report’s executive summaries to clear up the confusion, but he did not.
The letter’s “snitty” tone, he said, suggested that it had been written by special counsel staff rather than Mueller. »