....It's a trap!
Posted on 01/09/2018 10:43:54 AM PST by bkopto
The Washington Post reports that Robert Mueller has told President Trump’s legal team that his office will likely seek an interview with the president. I doubt that Trump’s legal team is surprised. It always seemed inevitable that Mueller would want to interview Trump.
What should the president’s response be? I agree with Alan Dershowitz. He says: “I would never let the prosecution interview my client.”
There are two reasons why, in this context, allowing such an interview is a particularly bad idea. First, the client is Donald Trump. He is notorious for imprecision with words and for shooting from the hip. He is probably uncoachable as a witness. Representing him at a deposition or similar proceeding strikes me as a lawyer’s worst nightmare.
Second, the prosecution is Robert Mueller and his team of Trump-hating partisans. Their purpose in interviewing Trump won’t just be to gather the facts needed to wrap up their investigation. In my view, it will also be to induce Trump to make statements the prosecution can use to build a case that the president has lied to the prosecution.
Accordingly, Trump’s legal team should resist being questioned by Mueller’s team. There is precedent for such resistance. As the Post reminds us, Bill Clinton resisted being questioned by Ken Starr’s team, though eventually he was compelled to testify.
In the likely event of a dispute over whether Trump must testify, one issue will be whether the information prosecutors seek can be obtained through another means. In this case, Mueller likely will be cross-checking Trump’s version of events with the versions of others, such as James Comey. In a sense the information will have already been obtained via, say, Comey, Michael Flynn, or Jared Kushner. But in a practical sense, only Trump can provide Trump’s version of what happened.
As noted, though, I believe the purpose of the interview will be more to catch Trump in something Mueller’s team can characterize as a lie than to obtain Trump’s version of the facts. Hence the need to be especially wary.
Reread your post.
I love the video of Clinton being questioned under oath and on video.
They ask him numerous “If Monica Lewinsky said you inserted a cigar into her vagina, would she be telling the truth.
To which Clinton tried say “Here is what I want to say and what I want you all to know about that....”
At which point the questioners cut him off and said “Sir we have many questions here that require a simple yes or no answer- if you are going to give a long-winded response to each one it will take an enormous amount of time”
It was beautiful
I’d rather Trump not be put through 16 hours of questioning that Hillary was. Waste of time on both counts.
President Trump - Mueller’s investigative team’s bias and criminal activity and his own conflicts of interest do not obligate you to this Democrat-Communist mole’s questioning.
You are the President of the United States and THE investigation is OVER.
The left won’t hate you less, and we will love you more.
....It's a trap!
YUP, and ppl should keep in mind that Scooter Libby was a Columbia-trained lawyer who’d been a partner in a leading DC law firm. If they can get someone like that tied up in an utterly trivial “process crime” they can do it to anyone. POTUS Trump and his lawyers need to keep Mueller at arm’s length, and then go on the offensive when necessary. Mueller has not even the remotest ALLEGATION of a crime to “investigate” with President Trump. Tell him where to shove off....
Dear Special Counsel Mueller:
Go take a flying leap.
Most Excellent idea! Perhaps our President should tweet this out! Ha! Ha! Ha!
Trump should ask Muller to state in writing what crime is he being investigated for, that makes the interview necessary, before he agrees to the interview.
Trump should just give Mueller what he deserves. Two middle finger salutes.
Written questions only... Responded to in kind.
JMHo
Time to go alpha male. State he will submit to an interview with precisely the same rules that Hillary’s interview had. His lawyers go with him and can interrupt at any time. No recording devices. No swearing in. A short time limit... and a letter of exoneration delivered BEFORE the interview.
Stick it right up their azz. It’s a golden opportunity.
Pure Trumpian! Well done.
Mueller has a problem. All of the evidence he has so far have been obtained illegally.
Think about it.
5.56mm
Lawyers are one of the few professions that have to mess up more stuff the more of them there are so that they remain employable. They share this unenviable status with the likes of economists and social workers.
But Shakespeare was wrong: the way to deal with them is to dilute the value of their base skill set so that they have a harder time just living off the law. Making the equivalent of pre Law part of public education without which you cannot get a diploma would be a promising start.
The only way out is through, not back.
But as for the legal class as it is: never trust.
I agree completely. Mr. President, do not testify!!!
“The Washington Post reports that...”
Why did any of you read past that? Fake news. It came out yesterday using “sources familiar with” it again. Translation: IT’S FICTION
Just answer “I don’t recall” to all questions aka Clinton Defense Mode.
Just pull a ‘Democrat”. I don’t recall, I don’t recollect, I’m using my Fifth Amendment right, What difference does it matter???
He didn't collude with Russia!!!
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