After Attorney General William Barr submitted his summary to Congress of special counsel Robert Mueller’s final report, reactions started rolling in from Republicans, including the President, his administration, his legal team and members of Congress. Read and listen to some of the reactions below:
The President:
No Collusion, No Obstruction, Complete and Total EXONERATION. KEEP AMERICA GREAT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2019
Trump: "To be honest, it's a shame that your president has had to go through this for– before I even got elected, it began." pic.twitter.com/svSUpevr8H
— Matt Shuham (@mattshuham) March 24, 2019
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders:
The Special Counsel did not find any collusion and did not find any obstruction. AG Barr and DAG Rosenstein further determined there was no obstruction. The findings of the Department of Justice are a total and complete exoneration of the President of the United States.”
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) March 24, 2019
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY):
“I thank the Attorney General for promptly advising the Congress of the Special Counsel’s principal conclusions in this matter, consistent with his Friday letter to the Congress.
“The Special Counsel’s conclusions confirm the President’s account that there was no effort by his campaign to conspire or coordinate with Russia in its efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election.
“However, Russia’s ongoing efforts to interfere with our democracy are dangerous and disturbing, and I welcome the Special Counsel’s contributions to our efforts to understand better Russia’s activities in this regard. And I look forward to the continuing work of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on the threats posed to our democratic institutions by foreign interference.
“I appreciate the Attorney General’s commitment to continue to review the record in this matter over the coming days, in conjunction with Special Counsel Mueller, with the goal of producing as much information as possible, consistent with the law. I look forward to reviewing that information.”
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA):
After two years, two congressional investigations, and now the closure of a Special Counsel investigation, it is abundantly clear, without a shadow of a doubt, there was no collusion. This case is closed.
My full statement: pic.twitter.com/XiPQZom3Fp— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) March 24, 2019
Trump personal legal team Rudy Giuliani, Jay Sekulow, Jane Serene Raskin, Martin R. Raskin:
“As we have stated from the very beginning, there was no collusion and no obstruction. The Special Counsel’s investigation “did not find that the Trump campaign or anyone associated with it conspired or coordinated with Russia in its efforts to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election.”
Further, Attorney General Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein concluded that there was no obstruction of justice: “In cataloguing the President’s actions, many of which took place in public view, the report identified no actions that, in our judgment, constitute obstructive conduct, had a nexus to a pending or contemplated proceeding, and were done with corrupt intent.”
This is a complete and total vindication of the President.
Giuliani and Sekulow react to Mueller letter: pic.twitter.com/zL2yTPDJZ0
— Matt Shuham (@mattshuham) March 24, 2019
Donald Trump Jr.
My statement. pic.twitter.com/Ny5If9KnCW
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) March 24, 2019
Trump 2020 campaign manager Brad Parscale:
“Today marks the day that President Trump has been completely and fully vindicated by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, exposing the Russia collusion conspiracy theory for the sham that it always was and catching Democrats in an elaborate web of lies and deceit.
After issuing 2,800 subpoenas and 500 search warrants, interviewing 500 witnesses, employing 40 FBI agents and 19 lawyers, and spending tens of millions of taxpayer dollars, Robert Mueller concluded unequivocally, ‘[T]he investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.’ Moreover, the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General determined that there was no evidence of obstruction of justice.
Nevertheless, Democrats took us on a frantic, chaotic, conspiracy-laden roller coaster for two years, alleging wrongdoing where there was none. So distraught and blindsided by the results of the 2016 elections, Democrats lied to the American people continually, hoping to undo the legitimate election of President Trump. Their dirty tricks have not ended. Even today Democrats have picked up the disgraceful mantle of investigating, obstructing, and destroying the will of the American people at any cost. They failed once and they will fail again.
Despite a roving Special Counsel and desperate Democrats trailing him every step of the way, President Trump has kept his focus where it belongs: achieving for the American people. He is making historic economic progress that benefits all Americans, all to Make America Great Again.
The American people should take notice: the Democrats have lied to you, while President Trump has been hard at work building a booming economy and making you safer.”
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC):
I have just received topline findings from Attorney General Barr.
Good day for the rule of law.
Great day for President Trump and his team.
No collusion and no obstruction.
The cloud hanging over President Trump has been removed by this report.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 24, 2019
Bad day for those hoping the Mueller investigation would take President Trump down.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 24, 2019
Great job by Mr. Mueller and his team to thoroughly examine all things Russia.
Now it is time to move on, govern the country, and get ready to combat Russia and other foreign actors ahead of 2020.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 24, 2019
House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Doug Collins (R-GA), in part:
“For two years, Special Counsel Mueller conducted his investigation with every available Justice Department resource at his disposal, and today’s principal conclusions assure every American there was no collusion between Russia and Donald Trump or his campaign. Russia is a bad actor with dark intentions, but there is no evidence that they compromised a presidential nominee. The special counsel’s investigation was long, thorough and conclusive: There was no collusion. There is no constitutional crisis. As the report states, ‘the evidence does not establish that the President was involved in an underlying crime related to Russian election interference.’
“The events that gave rise to the appointment of the Special Counsel mark a dark chapter in American history. The investigation began with a handful of politically-biased actors within the Justice Department who inappropriately used a campaign research document to launch a coordinated partisan attack on the President. Now, after 22 months and over $25 million in taxpayer funds, we know what many of us suspected all along. There was no collusion, coordination, or cooperation with Russia. All the Special Counsel’s prosecutions of U.S. persons in the course of this investigation were wholly unrelated to collusion. I hope this will put an end to the partisan and political investigations in Congress aimed at undermining President Trump.”
House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes (R-CA):
The Russia investigation was based on false pretenses, false intel, and false media reports. House Intel found a yr ago there was no evidence of collusion, and Democrats who falsely claim to have such evidence have needlessly provoked a terrible, more than two-year-long crisis.
— Devin Nunes (@DevinNunes) March 24, 2019
Let’s keep in mind that this is not the Mueller report. It is the Barr report.
The thing is that the wording of the Barr letter will allow the Trump people to maintain that media narrative unless some of the damaging details that must be in the Mueller Report are disclosed.
Though it’s dangerous, his allies should be the only folks talking about this.
“… complete and total exoneration” is spin. Investigations continue. The administration is already overstepping. It’s only a matter of time before the president reveals yet more criminality now that he feels safe. Meanwhile, the citizenry must get down to the serious business of voting them all out in 2020. Trust the State AGs to do their job on their own timeline.