With Release Of Mueller Report, Liberals Renew Calls For Impeachment

And so it begins — all over again.

With the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report after a nearly two-year probe into allegations that President Trump or members of his campaign colluded with Russia, liberals are renewing calls to impeach Trump — even though the report concludes that Trump committed no crimes.

“The report provides a conundrum for Congress by virtually inviting an impeachment probe around the obstruction issue,” David Axelrod, a former top aide to Barack Obama, wrote on Twitter.

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said on MSNBC that “Our investigation has already begun and we have a meeting this afternoon of the Judiciary Committee.”

In his report, Mueller wrote this: “Although the president has broad authority under Article II, that authority co-exists with Congress’s Article 1 power to enact laws that protect congressional proceedings, federal investigations, the courts and grand juries against corrupt efforts to that undermine their functions. … But when the president’s official actions come into conflict with the prohibitions in the obstruction statutes, any congressional tension is reconciled through separation of power analysis.”

The special counsel also wrote: “[W]e concluded that Congress has the authority to prohibit a president’s corrupt use of his authority in order to protect the integrity of the administration of justice.”

Said Neal Katyal, solicitor general under Obama, “This is entirely a hand-off to Congress, that’s what this document is.”

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi immediately pounced, calling on Mueller to appear before Congress — what would amount to a first step toward further proceedings.

“Attorney General [William] Barr’s regrettably partisan handling of the Mueller report, including his slanted March 24th summary letter, his irresponsible testimony before Congress last week, and his indefensible plan to spin the report in a press conference later this morning — hours before he allows the public or Congress to see it — have resulted in a crisis of confidence in his independence and impartiality,” the two Democratic leaders said in a joint statement. “We believe the only way to begin restoring public trust in the handling of the Special Counsel’s investigation is for Special Counsel Mueller himself to provide public testimony in the House and Senate as soon as possible. The American people deserve to hear the truth.”

That will lead to months of hearings — likely extending right up to the 2020 election.

Pelosi weeks ago said that she opposes impeachment, asserting that such a move would divide the nation. “I’m not for impeachment,” the California Democrat said in March. And because Republicans control the Senate, any impeachment — assuming it would pass the Democrat-controlled House — would likely fizzle in the higher chamber. But with the release of the report, Pelosi will now face pressure to move forward with impeachment — despite her misgivings.

CNBC reporter John Harwood, a longtime cheerleader for the Democrats, said Thursday that Barr’s handling of the Mueller report “will make it harder for House Democratic leaders to resist initiating impeachment proceedings.”

CNN, of course, was absolutely giddy with the possibility of impeachment, the Media Research Center reported in a piece headlined “CNN Panel Celebrates Mueller Report as ‘Road Map’ for Dems to Impeach Trump.”

 

 

 

 

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