Mueller Did a Lois Lerner, Gave Self Serving Testimony & Basically Plead the 5th 

Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller’s Wednesday, no questions allowed, “presser” essentially served as self promoting testimony that allowed for no cross examination.  It had us recalling a similar stunt performed by another very controversial, high ranking bureaucrat, cloistered in an all powerful government agency. 

If you remember, Lois Lerner was caught harassing Conservatives.  She led the IRS division that processed applications for tax-exempt groups. “A 2013 inspector general’s report found the IRS had singled out conservative and tea party organizations for intense scrutiny, oftentimes simply based on their conservative-sounding or tea party names. The IRS delayed for months, even years, the applications, and some groups were improperly questioned about their donors and their religious affiliations and practices.”

Ms. Lerner infamously gave a pious opening statement before Congress, then claiming her protections against self-incrimination, invoked the Fifth Amendment and clammed up.  There was an outcry because many knowledgeable attorneys believed her initial remarks invalidated that right.      

In the case, Nor-Cal vs. The United States, Lerner’s misdeeds forced our federal government to issue $3.5 million in “settlement checks to 100 right-of-center groups wrongfully targeted for their political beliefs under the Obama administration’s Internal Revenue Service….”

Now, fast forward to Mueller’s sheltered, carefully scripted, but poorly delivered comments.  He self righteously defended not only his report but all those who’d worked on it.  Mueller then refused all questions, and much like Lois Lerner, basically told Congress it would be a waste of time to ask him to testify.  

You see, between his report and “briefing”,  he’d said all he had to say.  If House Members and Senators planned on looking for answers related to aspects of his investigation Mueller deemed uncomfortable, they’ll be stonewalled.

Based on Robert Mueller’s history of managing some unseemly major cases that smelled of prosecutorial misconduct and the halted reading of even prepared remarks, it’s easy to see why this lawyer is very wary of being interrogated by some razor sharp GOP lawmakers.  

Rather than be asked such questions as, “What was the basis for your claim that disgraced/fired/ overtly biased investigators such as Andrew McCabe, Peter Strzok, James Comey, and Bruce Ohr acted in “a fair and independent manner?”, Bob Mueller promised he’d “clam up”.  

Guess he figured if the strategy of throwing yourself a rhetorical bouquet and then refusing to take questions worked for the IRS’ Lois Lerner, it will surely work for a former head of the FBI, and Special Counsel, Robert Mueller.  

While the nation literally paid a price for Lerner’s biases, we’ll likely suffer greater and more far reaching consequences resulting from Mueller’s. 

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