Well, this is another move that is almost certain to anger the president. An appeals court has awarded the US House of Representatives the right to review Grand Jury materials from the Robert Mueller investigation.
Mueller served as White House Special Counsel during a years-long investigation into the 2016 election. The DC Circuit Court of Appeals reached this decision Tuesday afternoon, siding with the chief judge of the DC Circuit Court.
The appeals court was split 2-1 in their decision on the case. Judge Judith Rogers, writing for the majority, stated that Mueller’s own language kept the possibility of the House subpoenaing his findings open.
This, she argued, was due to Mueller stopping short of deciding whether or not Trump was guilty of obstruction of justice. That means it’s up to Congress to make a decision on that matter.
The Justice Department argued that the Mueller Report materials should remain sealed. But legal experts like the chief judge of the DC Circuit Court slammed the arguments.
The appeals court’s decision, however, doesn’t mean that this is the end of the battle. The Justice Department could appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court is composed of five conservative appointees, and four Democratic appointees.
The Justice Department has attempted to claim a very broad swath of protections for the president. They cite obscure memos and executive privileges that the president hasn’t enjoyed in other administrations. Why are so many career law enforcement professionals and lifelong politicians shielding Trump in this way? The reasoning is anyone’s guess.
The Grand Jury materials are interesting for one reason: There could be a discrepancy between Trump’s written answers to Mueller’s questioning, which were given under lawyer advice, and answers that campaign witnesses gave Mueller.
In particular, there could be a problem with Trump’s claims. Trump alleged that he didn’t have a conversation about Wikileaks in 2016. Campaign witnesses then testified under oath. They said the opposite of what Trump said.
This could open up the possibility of yet another obstruction of justice investigation. The House has could even impeach Trump again if they learn there is proof that he obstructed justice in Mueller’s investigation.
They made this clear during the Ukraine impeachment proceedings. The House said that Trump could be impeached again for his actions during the Mueller investigation.
