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Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#277726: Apr 18th 2019 at 8:50:09 AM

In short: Mueller punted on making a prosecutorial decision because the target is the President of the United States, and he is subscribing to the view that only Congress can "prosecute" a sitting President.

Edited by Fighteer on Apr 18th 2019 at 11:59:07 AM

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#277727: Apr 18th 2019 at 8:53:58 AM

Yeah, it's not that the investigation is incomplete, it's "here's all the evidence we collected, but I'm not going to say what it all means because passing judgement on a sitting president is not my job, it's the job of Congress during an impeachment trial. But if the evidence left me convinced that he was innocent, I'd definitely say so."

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#277728: Apr 18th 2019 at 8:59:16 AM

it's a disappointing but not unsurprising outcome,as President he's damn near untouchable

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#277729: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:03:24 AM

Isn't it the outcome we already had?

Edited by sgamer82 on Apr 18th 2019 at 10:03:48 AM

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#277730: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:04:00 AM

Take also note of what is said in p.156 (368 of 448) and before, things like "Finally, the President's statements insinuating that members of Cohen's family committed crimes after Cohen began cooperating with the government could be viewed as an effort to retaliate against Cohen and chill further testimony adverse to the President by Cohen and others" followed by a rebuttal and by a rebuttal-rebuttal "The timing of the statements supports an inference that they were intended at least in part to discourage Cohen from further cooperation".

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
TacticalFox88 from USA Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Dating the Doctor
#277731: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:17:17 AM

Man, even in redacted form, that report is full of bombshells.

If Trump wasn't President, he'd be FUBAR

New Survey coming this weekend!
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#277732: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:20:32 AM

Mueller report says that attempts at Obstruction failed only because Trump's underlings refused illegal orders.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Euodiachloris Since: Oct, 2010
#277733: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:26:03 AM

Condensed, non-Barr summation: in bigger doo-doo than Nixon.

I'd do a more conclusive blow-by-blow comparing the two, but... Seriously, Trump pulled a way stupider Nixon in just about every way imaginable.

Edited by Euodiachloris on Apr 18th 2019 at 5:28:08 PM

TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#277734: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:27:36 AM

Can't wait to hear all the Republicans boasting about how they refuse to even read it.

My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.
Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#277735: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:29:36 AM

They'll pretend the report does not exist and neither does Muller

"Muller?Oh you mean the yogurt.."

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
singularityshot Since: Dec, 2012
#277736: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:38:40 AM

Given that Muller is being called to testify in front of Congress, they really can't ignore him unless they pull of some really desperate stunt such as boycotting the hearings or some such.

Because really, I want to see the Republicans try and pull the same moves they tried to pull on Peter Strzok - i.e. the attempted character assassination in "is that the same look you gave your wife as you lied about your affair?" type questions.

I can't imagine that even the Republicans would be so stupid / desperate to try a character assassination attempt on Robert Muller, but I've been wrong before.

Edited by singularityshot on Apr 18th 2019 at 9:39:17 AM

TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#277737: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:51:35 AM

They've been trying to assassinate his credibility for two years. He's a lifelong Republican who was appointed to lead the FBI during the Bush Administration. He only stayed on past his ten-year term because Obama was impressed with his work. However, that didn't stop Trump, FOX, and Congressional Republicans from painting him with the brush, "OBAMA stooge put in office by OBAMA to do OBAMA'S dirty work."

Edited by TobiasDrake on Apr 18th 2019 at 10:51:52 AM

My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.
Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#277738: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:52:51 AM

Most of them couldn't even bring themselves to speak up for Mc Cain when Trump attacked him a few weeks ago. They won't speak up for Muller if Trump tells them not to.

singularityshot Since: Dec, 2012
#277739: Apr 18th 2019 at 9:55:58 AM

True, I accept that they have been trying to diminish Muller over the past two years, but that was always in the media with him having no inclination to respond.

I'm talking about attempting to do it to his face, in Congress as part of the upcoming hearings.

Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#277740: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:07:01 AM

Props to the press. It seems no real reporter bought what Barr was trying to sell earlier. Almost all of them essentially said "Barr is doing a thing." and then promptly blew him off to get the actual report.

AzurePaladin She/Her Pronouns from Forest of Magic Since: Apr, 2018 Relationship Status: Mu
She/Her Pronouns
#277741: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:07:12 AM

For something supposedly "lightly redacted", there sure are a lot of blank areas for anything surrounding Trump. Not to mention at least one page that is completely redacted out.

The awful things he says and does are burned into our cultural consciousness like a CRT display left on the same picture too long. -Fighteer
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#277742: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:07:15 AM

The GOP Congresscritters are pretty much spineless jellyfish.

Disgusted, but not surprised
CharlesPhipps Since: Jan, 2001
#277743: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:09:24 AM

Mueller's issue being that he's a conservative, yes, but a cop first and believes in his job.

And the Republicans will gleefully accuse him of everything under the son with no hesitation.

Author of The Rules of Supervillainy, Cthulhu Armageddon, and United States of Monsters.
Euodiachloris Since: Oct, 2010
#277744: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:42:59 AM

[up][up][up]The thing I find hilarious is that what we can read is still effing damning.

singularityshot Since: Dec, 2012
#277745: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:44:44 AM

So far the comical thing is reading the live blog on the Guardian. Full credit to them, they didn't skip to the good bits and have only just hit on the appendix - that contains Trump's written answers to the questions that Muller sent him in lieu of a sit down interview.

The answers were the equivalent of a no comment interview from someone suffering from some sort of problem with their memory. Muller, it seems, took one look at those answers, threw them in the trash and asked again for a sit down interview, which the White House refused.

Although what gets me is the line from Trump - "I have no independent recollection..."

What does that even mean - does that mean there might be dependent recollections or what?

Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#277747: Apr 18th 2019 at 10:49:34 AM

It means "Ask someone else,I won't answer your question because if i did that means I'm guilty"

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
PushoverMediaCritic I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out. from the Italy of America Since: Jul, 2015 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
I'm sorry Tien, but I must go all out.
#277748: Apr 18th 2019 at 11:11:14 AM

Man, Barr really was full of shit when he first summarized this.

ironballs16 Since: Jul, 2009 Relationship Status: Owner of a lonely heart
#277749: Apr 18th 2019 at 11:29:23 AM

Certain passages of the report describe behind-the-scenes moments as the president fended off the advance of investigators, including a description of Trump’s reaction to the appointment of Mueller: “the President slumped back in his chair and said, ‘Oh my God. This is terrible. This is the end of my Presidency. I’m fucked.’”

This is... not exactly the action of an innocent man.

"Why would I inflict myself on somebody else?"
TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#277750: Apr 18th 2019 at 11:29:50 AM

I'm at work and haven't had a chance to read it.

Is there anything condemning on the collusion front? Or is it all obstruction? Because we can't pin him on only obstruction; it's too easy for Republicans to make a defense that "You can't obstruct justice if you're innocent." It's been their go-to in regards to the obstruction of justice claims. That defense is f*ckstupid but centrist voters looking for an excuse to not take a side will eat it up if we can't also demonstrate that he was actually trying to hide something else.

But if we've got some damning stuff on the collusion front, that's a different story.

Edited by TobiasDrake on Apr 18th 2019 at 12:31:39 PM

My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.

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