Has anyone read Muellers op ed in the Washington Post?

[onecaliberal]

If you have a subscription can you give us the gist?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/11/mueller-stone-oped/

[marybourg]

1. Here's an excerpt:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142535731

[onecaliberal]

11. Thanks

[Pantagruel]

2. Here's one account

"Mueller Breaks His Silence: Roger Stone “Lied Repeatedly”
The former special counsel responds to Trump.

DAN FRIEDMAN
Reporter

Breaking a year of public silence, special counsel Robert Mueller defended his investigation in an op-ed published Saturday in the Washington Post. Mueller’s piece ran a day after President Donald Trump commuted the three-year prison sentence of Roger Stone, his longtime adviser. In announcing the move, the White House asserted that Stone, who Mueller’s office prosecuted last year, “is a victim of the Russia Hoax that the Left and its allies in the media perpetuated for years in an attempt to undermine the Trump Presidency.”

“The work of the special counsel’s office—its report, indictments, guilty pleas and convictions—should speak for itself,” Mueller wrote. “But I feel compelled to respond both to broad claims that our investigation was illegitimate and our motives were improper, and to specific claims that Roger Stone was a victim of our office.”

Last November, a jury convicted Stone on five counts of making false statements to the House Intelligence Committee, obstructing a congressional inquiry, and witness tampering. Mueller noted Saturday that the jurors “determined [Stone] lied repeatedly to members of Congress. He lied about the identity of his intermediary to WikiLeaks. He lied about the existence of written communications with his intermediary. He lied by denying he had communicated with the Trump campaign about the timing of WikiLeaks’ releases. He in fact updated senior campaign officials repeatedly about WikiLeaks. And he tampered with a witness, imploring him to stonewall Congress.”

Mueller’s op-ed, like his report last year, is bland and avoids taking direct shots at Trump. But the former FBI boss did explain why the Trump-Russia investigation and Stone’s lies to Congress were significant.

“Russian efforts to interfere in our political system, and the essential question of whether those efforts involved the Trump campaign, required investigation,” Mueller wrote. “In that investigation, it was critical for us (and, before us, the FBI) to obtain full and accurate information. Likewise, it was critical for Congress to obtain accurate information from its witnesses. When a subject lies to investigators, it strikes at the core of the government’s efforts to find the truth and hold wrongdoers accountable. It may ultimately impede those efforts.”

[onecaliberal]

12. Thank you.

[W_HAMILTON]

3. Here are some excerpts:

The work of the special counsel’s office — its report, indictments, guilty pleas and convictions — should speak for itself. But I feel compelled to respond both to broad claims that our investigation was illegitimate and our motives were improper, and to specific claims that Roger Stone was a victim of our office. The Russia investigation was of paramount importance. Stone was prosecuted and convicted because he committed federal crimes. He remains a convicted felon, and rightly so.

Russia’s actions were a threat to America’s democracy. It was critical that they be investigated and understood. By late 2016, the FBI had evidence that the Russians had signaled to a Trump campaign adviser that they could assist the campaign through the anonymous release of information damaging to the Democratic candidate. And the FBI knew that the Russians had done just that: Beginning in July 2016, WikiLeaks released emails stolen by Russian military intelligence officers from the Clinton campaign. Other online personas using false names — fronts for Russian military intelligence — also released Clinton campaign emails.

...

Congress also investigated and sought information from Stone. A jury later determined he lied repeatedly to members of Congress. He lied about the identity of his intermediary to WikiLeaks. He lied about the existence of written communications with his intermediary. He lied by denying he had communicated with the Trump campaign about the timing of WikiLeaks’ releases. He in fact updated senior campaign officials repeatedly about WikiLeaks. And he tampered with a witness, imploring him to stonewall Congress.

...

We made every decision in Stone’s case, as in all our cases, based solely on the facts and the law and in accordance with the rule of law. The women and men who conducted these investigations and prosecutions acted with the highest integrity. Claims to the contrary are false.

Actually, it's a pretty short op-ed and somewhat disappointing in that it wasn't more forceful, given that this is the first time Mueller has spoken out publicly on these subjects, I believe.

[onecaliberal]

13. Definitely. I guess this is the best we will get from him.

[TreasonousBastard]

4. Nothing new or earthshaking, but very strong opinion that Stone is one of the bad guys.

Excepts":

Stone became a central figure in our investigation for two key reasons: He communicated in 2016 with individuals known to us to be Russian intelligence officers, and he claimed advance knowledge of WikiLeaks’ release of emails stolen by those Russian intelligence officers.

We now have a detailed picture of Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election. The special counsel’s office identified two principal operations directed at our election: hacking and dumping Clinton campaign emails, and an online social media campaign to disparage the Democratic candidate. We also identified numerous links between the Russian government and Trump campaign personnel — Stone among them. We did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired with the Russian government in its activities. The investigation did, however, establish that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome. It also established that the campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts.

Congress also investigated and sought information from Stone. A jury later determined he lied repeatedly to members of Congress. He lied about the identity of his intermediary to WikiLeaks. He lied about the existence of written communications with his intermediary. He lied by denying he had communicated with the Trump campaign about the timing of WikiLeaks’ releases. He in fact updated senior campaign officials repeatedly about WikiLeaks. And he tampered with a witness, imploring him to stonewall Congress.

[onecaliberal]

14. Stone is a piece of crap but so is everyone in the dump orbit including all dumps.

[Laelth]

5. My sense of it was "too little, too late." n/t

-Laelth

[orwell]

6. Screw Mueller...

...for his silence over Barr's "public interpretation" of his report.

And while I'm at it, screw that asshole Comey as well for his part in handing the Orange Julius Caesar the election.

Too little...too late!

[Brother Mythos]

7. I agree on both counts.

Further, I'm under the impression that Comey actually believes he's some kind of a hero.

[Hortensis]

8. To those whose interests he served. He didn't commit

career suicide to see if he'd get caught. Nor did his presumptive successor in the position at the pinnacle of both their careers.

[uponit7771]

10. ..👍🏼

[denbot]

9. Yuppers, pretty damning.

As for the gist, it was poker night and I'm kinda drunk so on top of my A.D.D., um.. no.