Wednesday’s Mueller testimony will have more theatrical implications, but one hopes for key moments that will define what will likely be the move to further impeachment inquiries, even if they are not yet declared a bill of impeachment.
Recalling earlier sessions, there will be the usual GOP questions that will signal already debunked talking points.
Mueller limiting his testimony to public findings leaves plenty of room to discuss at least 10 instances of Obstruction of Justice. And then there’s questions that while limited to Mueller’s report, will open further investigations, including Russia, counterintelligence analysis, and Deutsche Bank.
“Conjure magic and they’ll be distracted…”
President Trump’s job approval rating is near its all-time high and his second-quarter average is the best of his presidency, according to the latest data from Gallup.
From mid-April to mid-July, Trump’s 10th quarter in office, the president had an average approval rating of 42.7 percent. That topped his previous best quarter of 41.9 percent, which came during his sixth quarter in office.
Gallup noted, however, that Trump’s job approval rating has fluctuated between a very narrow range of 36.8 percent to 42.7 percent, giving him a strong floor of support but a low ceiling.
And Trump’s current job approval is off its high mark of 46 percent, reached in mid-April, and stands at 44 percent as of July 12.
The Gallup data does not account for Trump’s latest controversy, in which he attacked four Democratic women of color in Congress, saying they should “go back” to where they came from.
II. Counterintelligence analysis
12. Upon your appointment, did you review the case opening documentation for the counterintelligence investigation into Russian election interference, code named Crossfire Hurricane? Can you explain the basis for the opening of that investigation? Do you believe it was a properly predicated investigation?
13. Do you believe that Congress, including the Gang of Eight, has been adequately informed by your team and other parts of the intelligence community with respect to any counterintelligence assessments of Americans who may have been acting wittingly or unwittingly on behalf of the Russian government? Do you believe Congress, including the Gang of Eight, has been adequately informed by your team and other parts of the intelligence community with respect to other counterintelligence information that has come out of your and related investigations into Russian interference in the American political process and public and private institutions? If not, what have been the obstacles to Congress being adequately informed?
14. Did your office ever provide any assessment of the extent to which President Trump is acting—wittingly or unwittingly—to advance the interests of the Russian Government; if so, has that assessment been provided in some form to Congress (and, if so, to which Members)? If your office did not make that assessment, are you aware of the FBI or others in the government having produced such an assessment at any point, and do you know if that has been provided in some form to Congress? Are you aware of any consideration, in your office or elsewhere in the administration, of mitigation measures to address concerns of Russian influence (witting or unwitting) in the Trump White House? If so, what came of that consideration?
15. On March 20, 2017, then-FBI Director James Comey stated in a public congressional hearing:
“I have been authorized by the Department of Justice to confirm that the FBI, as part of our counterintelligence mission, is investigating the Russian government’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election and that includes investigating the nature of any links between individuals associated with the Trump campaign and the Russian government.”
The May 17, 2017 Order establishing your mandate stated:
“The Special Counsel is authorized to conduct the investigation confirmed by then-FBI Director James B. Comey in testimony before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on March 20, 2017.”
Your report, however, suggests that the counterintelligence investigation may have been conducted by other parts of the Justice Department. Given the public statements made by the FBI Director and given the Justice Department’s order, please explain publicly whether you maintained control over the counterintelligence investigation and your role and relationship to it since you assumed the position of Special Counsel.
16. In your report, you note that your office considered whether to charge Carter Page under the Foreign Agents Registration Act for being an unregistered agent of Russia, but did not believe you had sufficient evidence to prove these charges beyond a reasonable doubt. You also indicate that Page was the subject of a FISA order, and that the FBI did meet the lower probable cause threshold for that order on four instances. Did you ever review the underlying materials for the FISA order? Would any of those materials have included the evidence you considered in deciding whether to charge Page criminally?
17. Are significant parts of the counterintelligence investigation, confirmed by then-FBI Director James Comey on March 20, 2017, still ongoing?
18. Over the entire course of your investigation, did you have unrestricted access to the FBI to direct the Bureau to pursue leads and other investigatory matters of interest? Did you have unrestricted access to the CIA to encourage similar efforts?
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