Friday News Roundup - Domestic

On Sunday, Attorney General William Barr submitted a four-page letter about the Mueller report to Congress. His summary? There's no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and it's inconclusive whether President Trump attempted to obstruct justice.

The Washington Post reports:

After a nearly two-year investigation, Mueller's findings seemed to dispel the cloud of conspiracy that has hung over the administration since its inception. But by delivering caveats alongside conclusions, the closing of the Mueller investigation opens the door to fiercer political fights over the president's judgment and power.

[…] “After a long look, after a long investigation, after so many people have been so badly hurt, after not looking at the other side — where a lot of bad things happened, a lot of horrible things happened for our country — it was just announced there was no collusion with Russia,” the president said, declaring the findings “a complete and total exoneration.”

Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein have chosen not to pursue obstruction charges. Why did Mueller refrain from taking a position on obstruction of justice in his report?

Meanwhile, House Democrats are doubling down on demands for the Justice Department to release the full report, with threats to take the issue to the Supreme Court. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-NY, has been leading the charge.

There must be full transparency in what Special Counsel Mueller uncovered to not exonerate the President from wrongdoing. DOJ owes the public more than just a brief synopsis and decision not to go any further in their work.

— (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) March 24, 2019

Will the public ever see the Mueller report? And what of other pending investigations into the Trump administration?

We're also following the latest on climate change legislation. Senate Democrats have moved on from the Green New Deal initiative in favor of several separate bills, after the Senate blocked legislation to advance the comprehensive plan.

How will Democrats revitalize their climate change policy agenda heading into 2020?

We also get into the Trump administration's move to strike down the Affordable Care Act, Purdue Pharma's $270 million settlement with the state of Oklahoma, the latest on Jussie Smollett and much more.

Text by Kathryn Fink.

GUESTS

Susan Glasser, Staff writer, The New Yorker; global affairs analyst, CNN; @sbg1

Asawin Suebsaeng, White House reporter, The Daily Beast; @swin24

Yamiche Alcindor, White House correspondent, PBS NewsHour; contributor, NBC News and MSNBC; @Yamiche

For more, visit https://the1a.org.

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