Mueller takeaways
U.S. needs new rules for presidential campaigns
There is enough in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election to keep the partisan spinmeisters busy for years. There’s also enough in there to show what must be done to help protect the integrity of future elections.
According to a redacted version of the report, released Thursday by the Justice Department, Mr. Mueller found no evidence that President Donald Trump or his campaign colluded with Russia on election inference. Mr. Mueller was unable to determine whether the president tried to obstruct his investigation, although Mr. Trump said and did things during the probe that looked bad.
The report outlines the tacks that Russian operatives took to influence the election, such as buying ads on social media and creating fake organizations to sponsor rallies supporting Mr. Trump. It should be clear to all that the threat of foreign interference in the U.S. political system is here to stay and that social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, must guard against such perfidy just as local election boards must be vigilant for voting machine hacking.
Yet the public also must do a better job of educating itself about political messages, who may be behind them and why. During this period of political polarization, when people are primed to believe whatever resonates with them ideologically, this may be a difficult responsibility to embrace. But it is crucial.
While Mr. Mueller found no evidence of collusion with the Russians, it’s certainly true that Mr. Trump, his businesses associates and his campaign said and did things that raised the specter of wrongdoing — such as exploring a real estate project in Moscow through June 2016 and meeting with a Russian emissary that same month to discuss unflattering information about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
To limit the impact of foreign influence in the electoral process, the government should restrict presidential candidates’ overseas
business activities and private contacts with foreign governments. Campaigns should understand that association with foreign leaders or operatives will bring scrutiny. Because Mr. Mueller’s investigation was hampered to some extent by emails or other communications that were deleted by Trump associates or the campaign’s records management software, the government should require that future campaigns retain such documents.
Mr. Mueller cited 10 instances in which Mr. Trump’s words or actions — such as pressuring then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to take charge of the investigation in summer 2017— raised questions about possible obstruction of the Russia probe. Obstruction is a crime. But in the end, Mr. Mueller neither accused the president of obstruction nor exonerated him.
Congress may pursue an obstruction case if it desires, and with Democrats controlling the House, that’s a likely scenario. The Justice Department should respect Congress’ role by turning over an unredacted version of the Mueller report.
Although Mr. Mueller did not accuse Mr. Trump of a crime, his report paints an unflattering portrait of American electoral politics and highlights the nation’s vulnerability to foreign skulduggery. These issues must be addressed for the health of the republic.