Robert Mueller: Charging the president with a crime was not an option we could consider
Speaking publicly for first time since the release of Russia report, special counsel Robert Mueller says there were 'multiple, systematic efforts' to interfere with the presidential election, that his team found insufficient evidence to charge a broader conspiracy, and that if there was confidence that the president did not commit a crime, the report would have said so.
Prominent Democrats are ramping up calls to impeach President Trump in the aftermath of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's statement on Wednesday recapping his investigation's findings and emphasizing his report did not exonerate the president of obstruction of justice.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., whose committee would play a starring role in any impeachment effort, said during a New York City press conference on Wednesday afternoon, “With respect to [the] impeachment question, at this point all options are on the table and nothing should be ruled out.”
Mueller's statement triggered an avalanche of calls from 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls, and puts pressure on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has resisted calls so far from Democrats to pursue impeachment. During an event in California on Wednesday, Pelosi was non-commital but said, "Many constituents want to impeach the president. But we want to do what is right and what gets results."
Others, though, want to move ahead with impeachment now: Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., tweeted that there is a "legal and moral obligation to begin impeachment proceedings immediately."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., described Mueller's statement as "an impeachment referral," and said that Congress should act on it.
Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., also compared Mueller's remarks to an "impeachment referall," and said, "We need to start impeachment proceedings. It's our constitutional obligation."
Beto O'Rourke also weighed in, calling for "consequences, accountability, and justice," and saying impeachment was "the only way to ensure that."
Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., who is also running for president, said now that Mueller's job is done, "Impeachment hearings should begin tomorrow."
On the topic of obstruction of justice, Mueller stated that it would be unconstitutional to charge a sitting president with a crime, and he would not accuse someone of a crime without them being able to defend themselves in a court proceeding. At the same time, he said he was unable to exonerate the president either. This has added fuel to Democrats' desire to impeach Trump.
In an earlier statement, Nadler, the top Democrat on the committee, vowed that Congress would "respond."
"Given that Special Counsel Mueller was unable to pursue criminal charges against the President, it falls to Congress to respond to the crimes, lies and other wrongdoing of President Trump – and we will do so," Nadler said in a statement. "No one, not even the President of the United States, is above the law."
Nadler's statement specifically addressed obstruction of justice, saying that "the Constitution points to Congress to take action to hold the President accountable." Pelosi, in a statement, did not explicitly mention impeachment, but said, "The Congress holds sacred its constitutional responsibility to investigate and hold the President accountable for his abuse of power."
Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, issued a statement with a very different conclusion than Nadler.
"Special Counsel Mueller confirmed today what we knew months ago when his report was released: there was no collusion and no obstruction," Collins said in a statement. "Relitigating the 2016 election and reinvestigating the special counsel's findings will only further divide our country."
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders also issued a statement, emphatically stating that it was time to move on from the investigation after Mueller's report did not find evidence of collusion with Russia, and the Justice Department determined there was insufficient evidence of obstruction.
"The report was clear---there was no collusion, no conspiracy---and the Department of Justice confirmed there was no obstruction," Sanders said. Special Counsel Mueller also sstated that Attorney General Barr acted in good faith in his handling of the report. After two years, the Special Counsel is moving on with his life, and everyone else should do the same."
Trump's 2020 campaign also addressed Mueller's statement.
"Special Counsel Robert Mueller's remarks today confirmed what we already knew. There was no collusin between the Russians and the Trump campaign, and there was no case for obstruction," campaign manager Brad Parscale said in a statement. " President Trump has been fully and completely exonerated. Mueller said his investigation is over. The case is now closed."
Parscale went on to address the investigation of "the origins of the Russia hoax," and why the Justice Department and FBI intiated their probe of the Trump campaign.
"Anyone who is for transparency, constitutional civil libterties, and the rule of law should want to know why human sources, wiretapping, and unmasking were used to infiltrate a presidential campaign," he said.
Fox News' Alex Pappas contributed to this report.
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