Special Counsel Robert Mueller now has President Donald Trump’s written answers to his questions on Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Two very different things could happen next.
According to a Tuesday Politico report, Mueller still wants information on Trump’s actions post-inauguration as part of a greater investigation into possible obstruction of justice.
The taciturn special counsel could a) pull out the big subpoena guns and force a legal battle over the very power of the presidency or b) not do that, and use the information he already has to circumvent talking to Trump altogether.
Should Mueller choose option A, many factors will come into play, including acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker and his expressed disapproval of the probe, Brett Kavanaugh and an increasingly Trump-friendly Supreme Court and legal precedent dating back to Richard Nixon and Watergate.
For now, Mueller will comb through Trump’s responses, a format with downsides to both parties. While it helps Trump avoid the pressures and quick thinking in-person follow-ups demand, it also binds him to testimony just as legally binding as if he gave it to Mueller directly.
