Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
- Special counsel Robert Mueller on Wednesday in his first public statement on the Russia investigation said if he’d determined President Donald Trump didn’t commit a crime he "would have said so."
- "If we had confidence that the president did not commit a crime, we would have said so," Mueller said.
Special counsel Robert Mueller on Wednesday — in his first public, televised statement regarding the investigation he led into Russia election interference — said if he’d determined President Donald Trump didn’t commit a crime he "would have said so."
Mueller was referencing the portion of his investigation and report that focused on whether Trump committed obstruction of justice amid the probe.
"As set forth in the report, after that investigation, if we had had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so," Mueller said. "We did not, however, make a determination as to whether the president did commit a crime."
The special counsel’s report outlined 11 possible instances of obstruction by Trump, but declined to make a conclusion on whether the president committed a crime.
Mueller’s comments on Wednesday echoed his report, which stated, "If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the president clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, however, we are unable to reach that judgment."
The special counsel on Wednesday also said that he was legally unable to charge the president with a crime.
This article will continue to be updated.
See Also:
- Mueller says he’s resigning from the Justice Department and officially closing the Russia investigation
- Justin Amash says ‘a lot of’ Republican lawmakers agree with him that Trump should be impeached but won’t say it publicly
- The Republican congressman who called for Trump’s impeachment just skewered Attorney General Barr for trying to ‘sell the president’s false narrative’ about the Mueller report
Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (John Haltiwanger)