Thread by @Yamiche

We are 30 minutes in and Robert Mueller has already refuted a number of President Trump's claims including that the Mueller report found "no collusion" and that the Mueller report "totally exonerated" Trump.

And this is exactly what Dems wanted, a televised refutation of Trump.

Rep. Collins: In the colloquial version, are collusion and conspiracy synonymous?
Mueller: "No."

Collins insists Mueller is contradicting his report which said "collusion is largely synonymous with conspiracy as that crime is set forth in the general federal conspiracy statute."

Rep Ratcliffe offering a heated defense of Pres Trump: You wrote 180 pgs about decisions that weren't reached. You violated every principle for prosecutors by writing about crimes that you didn't charge. "Donald Trump shouldn't be below the law which is where Volume II puts him."

Another big takeaway that could make Pres Trump cringe.

Mueller has made it clear that Trump could be charged w/ crimes the moment he is no longer president. That underlines that 2020 might not just be about reelection for Trump. It might also be about him remaining a free man.

Rep. Chabot asked several questions about the Steele Dossier and Mueller over and over again said it was outside his purview.

Johnson moving quickly in his Qs
Johnson: Trump wanted to fire you?
Mueller: Correct
Johnson: You had no conflicts of interests?
Mueller: Correct
Johnson: WH counsel told president if he tried to remove you that that could be a basis for obstruction of justice?
Mueller: Correct

Gohmert: Who wrote the 9 mins words you spoke at your presser?
Mueller: I'm not going to get into that.
Gohmert: That's right. You didn't write them.
Gohmert: You were good friends with James Comey?
Mueller at first said business associates then said in fact the two are friends.

Gohmert's Q's sum up GOP case against Mueller and will likely be on FOX news

Gohmert: When did you find out that Peter Strzok had animus toward Trump?
Mueller: Summer of 2017.
Gohmert: Peter Strzok hated Trump. You didn’t know that before you added him to your team?
Mueller: No

Rep. Deutch: Why did President Trump want you fired? Deutch then refers to report which states "evidence indicates that the catalyst for the President’s decision to fire Comey was Comey’s unwillingness to publicly state that the President was not personally under investigation"

Robert Mueller refusing to get into his letter to AG Barr about the Barr's initial summary of his report.

.@RepKarenBass went into detail about moments where Pres Trump was directing WH aides and Don McGahn to deny that Trump was trying to fire Mueller. Bass ends by saying it is clear to her that if anyone else had done what Trump did "that person would be facing criminal charges."

Rep. Jim Jordan: You can charge 13 Russians and all kinds of people around the president but you can't charge the guy who launches it all?
Mueller: I'm not certain I agree with your characterizations.

Now up: Rep Matthew Gaetz, a big support and ally of President Trump.

Rep. Gaetz: Can you say with confidence that the Steele Dossier wasn't part of the Russian disinformation campaign?
Mueller: That part of the investigation pre-dated me. That is beyond my purview.

Rep. Jeffries trying to make the case now that President Trump's instructing other people to fire Mueller is an act of obstruction using the description found in the Mueller report.

Mueller won't confirm that but isn't pushing back on the line of questioning.

Quite a moment. @RepJeffries using graphics to argue that President Trump committed obstruction of justice while Robert Mueller says “I’m not supportive of that analytical charge.”

Robert Mueller has now said multiple times that President Trump could be indicted as soon as he is no longer president. What a thing.

Rep. Buck: Can you charge the president with obstruction of justice after he is out of office?
Again, Mueller without hesitation says "yes."

A plus for Dems, a problem for Trump: It has been clear and is now crystal clear that Mueller's team was working with tied hands because of DOJ policy that says you can't indict a sitting president. "One of the tools that prosecutors usually use was not there," Mueller said.