“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.
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3754105/posts
Excecllent read. Thanks for providing it!
Mueller’s “reasoning” and the Dems playbook follows this standard:
The seriousness of the allegations against Trump requires unending investigations on Trump...