Hirono: Mueller Lays Out Strong Case That Trump Obstructed Justice

Sen. Mazie K. Hirono released the following statement on Thursday, April 18, 2019, following the release of the redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report:

“Despite the Attorney General’s attempt to spin the Mueller Report in Donald Trump’s favor, it’s clear the Special Counsel’s investigation found serious wrongdoing by the President and many of his associates.

“The Special Counsel’s report lays out, in meticulous detail, evidence that Donald Trump obstructed justice. Among the many rich details in the report, Robert Mueller shows how Donald Trump fired James Comey to end the investigation into his campaign; how the President instructed Don McGahn to order Rod Rosenstein to fire the Special Counsel; and how Donald Trump sent messengers to Jeff Sessions to ‘unrecuse’ himself in order to limit the scope of the investigation.

“If not for existing Department of Justice policy, the Special Counsel had ample evidence to indict Donald Trump for obstruction.

“The Special Counsel also confirmed what our intelligence community had already unanimously concluded: that the Russian government interfered in the 2016 election to elect Donald Trump.

“Although the Special Counsel felt he couldn’t meet the high bar necessary to prove criminal conspiracy with the Russians, he demonstrated that Donald Trump and his campaign were willing to engage with our foremost adversary to gain an advantage in the 2016 election. This is just wrong, plain and simple.

“The Special Counsel’s report in no way exonerates the President. In fact, it implicates the President in criminal activity. Congress has an obligation to act like the separate branch of government it is and conduct serious oversight of this administration. Everything should be on the table.”