Robert Mueller builds case against Trump, pursues interview about Russia
On Tuesday, CNN revealed new details about Robert Mueller‘s probe that spelled trouble for President Donald Trump.
The special counsel reportedly wants to question Trump, amid other revelations that Mueller’s team has already spoken with former FBI Director James Comey and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Coming on the heels of the revelation that former Trump adviser Steve Bannon had also struck a deal to talk to Mueller, legal experts say this could put Mueller on a path to look at obstruction of justice charges.
“It’s possible that Mueller is closing in on his determination about what obstruction looks like, whether it is a criminal offense in his mind, whether it is an impeachable offense, or whether it amounts to nothing,” Michael Zeldin, a former senior aide to Mueller at the Justice Department, told CNN.
“It strikes me they are getting near the end of gathering all their information, and then … they are going to have to process that and make some decisions about how to proceed,” said Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia’s former Republican attorney general.
Still, this news doesn’t necessarily mean that Trump will be charged with obstruction of justice or impeached for his actions.
“We also don’t know if it will lead to anything at all. Sometimes you get to the end of an investigation and you have the final interview to check the box,” former US Attorney Preet Bharara explained during an appearance on Tuesday on CNN’s “Situation Room”.
“It may be that this will lead to something very significant and earth-shattering and earth-shaking for the country, it also could be something they are just putting to bed.”
Trump vs. the Justice Department
Trump has continued to blast the ongoing Russia investigation as a “witch hunt” and has lashed out repeatedly at the Justice Department. And recent news has shown Trump breaking norms when dealing with the investigation.
Axios reported that FBI Director Christopher Wray threatened to quit, and a CNN source claimed it was because Sessions had pressured Wray to clean out senior leadership who had worked for Comey. Apparently, Trump didn’t think Comey’s department could be trusted not to be against him.
And then there’s the news that Donald Trump asked then-acting director Andrew McCabe who he voted for in the 2016 election and criticized his wife for being affiliated with the Democratic Party, according to The Washington Post.
As to whether or not Donald Trump’s actions constitute obstruction of justice, that remains to be seen. But one thing is for sure: Robert Mueller isn’t slowing down.
