Mueller also said that his report does not exonerate Trump, something that no one in his position had ever done or said before, the equivalent to a judge or jury spokesperson saying they couldn’t find the defendant guilty but don’t know if he is still truly innocent.
“Mueller also said that his report does not exonerate Trump, something that no one in his position had ever done or said before, the equivalent to a judge or jury spokesperson saying they couldnt find the defendant guilty but dont know if he is still truly innocent.”
Not Exonerated Is Not a Standard Any Free Country Should Accept!
By CHARLES C. W. COOKE
May 29, 2019 11:52 AM
Special Counsel Robert Mueller departs after delivering a statement on his investigation at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., May 29, 2019.
Im sorry to be a broken record on this, but this line from Robert Mueller infuriates me:
If we had had confidence that the president had clearly not committed a crime we would have said so. Mueller
David M. Drucker (@DavidMDrucker) May 29, 2019
Thats not how it works in America. Investigators are supposed to look for evidence that a crime was committed, and, if they dont find enough to contend that a crime was a committed, they are supposed to say We didnt find enough to contend that a crime was committed. They are not supposed to look for evidence that a crime was not committed and then say, We couldnt find evidence of innocence.
I understand that Mueller was in an odd position. I understand, too, that this wasnt a criminal trial. But I dont think those norms are rendered any less important by those facts. By asking the executive to investigate itself, it was guaranteed yes, guaranteed that wed have a fight over obstruction of justice. For the architect of that investigation to keep saying We arent exonerating our target is extraordinary. Innocence is the default position in this country. If a person doesnt have enough evidence that someone committed a crime to contend that a crime was committed, he is obliged to presume his innocence. Not exonerated is not a standard in our system, and it shouldnt be one in our culture, either.
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