Democrats say Trump obstructed justice but hesitate on impeachment
Lawmakers seem willing for voters to decide matter
WASHINGTON — Top congressional Democrats said Thursday that President Donald Trump obstructed justice in trying to undermine the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election and promised a thorough investigation. But party leaders — and even 2020 presidential candidates — stopped short of calling for impeachment.
Still, special counsel Robert Mueller’s signal in his report that Congress should decide whether the president broke the law is certain to embolden liberals who favor impeachment to pressure party leaders and White House hopefuls.
In his report, Mueller not only identified 10 episodes of potential obstruction by Trump but also said it wasn’t his role to reach a conclusion, putting the onus on Congress if lawmakers are worried about “corrupt use of his authority.”
That was the reason Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., signed onto an impeachment resolution Thursday after the report’s release and Democratic donor and billionaire Tom Steyer renewed his call for Congress to impeach Trump.
For now, they were outliers, at odds with congressional leaders and several candidates.
“The report indicates that President Trump tried on multiple occasions to obstruct justice, only to be thwarted by advisers who knew better,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, DMd., striking a tone many Democrats hit throughout the day. “These include efforts to halt the special counsel’s investigation.”
Hoyer, however, later told CNN that “based on what we have seen to date, going forward on impeachment is not worthwhile at this point. Very frankly, there is an election in 18 months and the American people will make a judgment.”
Presidential candidates hoping to face off against Trump next year accused the president of misconduct but also steered clear of impeachment talk. Even Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a selfdescribed socialist who often spurns the establishment’s caution, made no mention of impeachment.
“It is clear that Donald Trump wanted nothing more than to shut down the Mueller investigation,” Sanders said. “While we have more detail from today’s report than before, Congress must continue its investigation into Trump’s conduct and any foreign attempts to influence our election.”
The caution underscores Democrats’ long-standing skepticism that they could and should impeach the president, reflecting the party’s view that the best chance to oust Trump is in next year’s presidential election. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has said she opposes moves to impeach Trump, arguing that though he is unfit for office, he’s “just not worth it.” She casts impeachment as a political move that would be too divisive, while other Democrats worry that it would energize Trump’s base voters and cost Democrats in the 2020 election.
Pelosi has also called for the impeachment process to be bipartisan, and with Republicans almost uniformly claiming victory for Trump on Thursday, the possibility is highly unlikely.
In a statement Thursday, Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., accused Attorney General William Barr of distorting Mueller’s report, reflecting a Democratic strategy to focus on Barr as they read the redacted report.
“Special Counsel Mueller’s report paints a disturbing picture of a president who has been weaving a web of deceit, lies and improper behavior and acting as if the law doesn’t apply to him,” Pelosi and Schumer said. “But if you hadn’t read the report and listened only to Mr. Barr, you wouldn’t have known any of that because Mr. Barr has been so misleading.”
On Thursday, Democrats latched onto Mueller’s report to argue the special counsel never intended for Barr to make a decision on obstruction but wanted Congress to take up the question.
“The special counsel made clear that he did not exonerate the president,” said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, DN.Y., the Judiciary Committee chairman. “The responsibility now falls to Congress to hold the president accountable for his actions.”
Barr is scheduled to testify before the Senate and House Judiciary panels in early May.
Nadler also announced his intention Thursday to subpoena the full Mueller report, setting up a major legal clash between Congress and the Justice Department as Democrats try to obtain redacted information.
Barr has promised to make the full contents of the report, absent grand jury information, available to a select group of committee leaders and senior lawmakers.