Special counsel Robert Mueller reached an unambiguous conclusion in the final report on his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election: Neither President Donald Trump nor any member of his campaign colluded with Russia.
The Justice Department released the special counsel’s report to Congress and the public on April 18, marking a definitive conclusion to the expansive probe of the president and his associates.
“Although the investigation established that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome and that the campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts, the investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government,” Mueller’s final report states.
Attorney General William Barr already summarized Mueller’s top-line findings in a letter on March 24. In a press conference shortly before the release of the report, Barr told reporters that Trump declined to assert executive privilege to redact any portion of the report. As a result, all of the redactions in the final document were determined by a small group from the Justice Department, Mueller’s office, and the intelligence community.
The special counsel identified two primary efforts by the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election. Extensive details on each effort have already been made public in indictments Mueller filed against the Internet Research Agency (IRA) and a group of Russian military intelligence officials with the GRU. While the IRA coordinated an illegal campaign to influence U.S. voters via social media, the GRU hacked Democratic targets and published the stolen emails online, the report alleges.
In both cases, Mueller did not find evidence to suggest that any American knowingly conspired with Russia.
“Put another way, the special counsel found no collusion by any Americans in the IRA’s illegal activity,” Barr said, adding “there was no evidence of Trump campaign ‘collusion’ with the Russian government’s hacking.”
Trump, who has been a fierce critic of the investigation, celebrated the news with a series of Twitter messages.
“As I have been saying all along, NO COLLUSION – NO OBSTRUCTION!” Trump wrote.
In brief remarks on the matter at an unrelated White House event, the president also suggested that steps should be taken to prevent a similar investigation from ensnaring future presidents.
“This should never happen to another president again,” Trump said. “This hoax should never happen to another president again.”
