Thread by @jentaub

Afternoon hearing begins with Chair @RepAdamSchiff discussing the disloyalty by the Trump campaign to our country

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@RepAdamSchiff Schiff says, "Worse than all of the lies and the greed is the disloyalty." When asked if he'd take foreign help in the future to win, he recalls Trump said, "sure, everyone does it."

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@RepAdamSchiff Now ranking member Nunes offers his opening remarks. "Welcome everyone to the last gasp of the Russia-collusion-conspiracy theory." He's covering all of the squares on the bingo card.

We've got squares covered: Clinton, Dossier, Fusion GPS, Obama, Steele, Leaking, Comey

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@RepAdamSchiff Both Mueller and Zebley have been sworn in.

Nunes said he and the Republicans refuse to ask Zebley questions.

Schiff responded. "There's an angry man down the street who is not happy" that Zebley is testifying, but like any citizen he's entitled to do so.

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@RepAdamSchiff Mueller is speaking. He wants his opening remarks from Judiciary to be incorporated here. Now he is explaining that report did not come to counterintelligence conclusions. His team shared relevant information with the FBI.

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@RepAdamSchiff He's again saying he won't speak about the opening of the FBI investigation or Steele Dossier as they are subject to ongoing investigations. Same language as this morning about this etc.

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@RepAdamSchiff Mueller is correcting his response to Lieu. He says the answer he is providing instead is that we did not reach a conclusion as to whether the president committed a crime

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@RepAdamSchiff Schiff: "In fact the campaign welcomed the Russian help."

Mueller: Yes

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@RepAdamSchiff Schiff: President's son, said he'd love it (dirt on Clinton). invited Russias to hack Hillary's emails. President praised Russian release of hacked campaign emails through wikileaks.

Mueller agreed

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@RepAdamSchiff Schiff: Several individuals were trying to make money during the campaign. Manafort from Russia. Flynn from Turkey. Trump from real estate deal in Moscow.

Mueller said yes to all of these.

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@RepAdamSchiff Schiff went through who was convicted of lying: Manafort, Gates, Flynn, Cohen.

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@RepAdamSchiff ⚡️Zap

@AdamSchiff: And when Donald Trump called your investigation "a witch hunt" that was also false, was it not?

Mueller: I'd like to think so, yes.

Schiff: Well, your investigation is not a witch hunt?

Mueller: It's not a witch hunt

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Also Schiff: When the president said the investigation was a hoax, that was false, wasn't it?

Mueller: True

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Schiff: Would you consider a billion dollar deal to build a tower in Moscow to be business dealings

Mueller: Yes (or something affirmative)

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Schiff: Russia committed federal crimes to help Trump win

Mueller: When you're talking about computer crimes mentioned in our report, correct

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Nunes is up now.

He's starting with origins of investigation. Says it was not late July 2016, but instead earlier when Carter Page and others were invited to a symposium.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Mueller is not answering questions around origin of investigation.

Now Nunes is talking about a Russian spy and an alleged affair with someone, and M16

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff In response to Nunes, Mueller says "I would not say we had an unlimited budget."

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Nunes is talking about an Andrew Downer, Australian politician. Talking about Misfud. Says they and Papadopolous deny ever discussing that Russians had Clinton emails

We are trying to figure out whether Boris Johnson has been compromised

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Nunes is still talking about Misfud. Says he's a Russian agent. "FBI failed to question him for half a year after opening investigation." Also said Misfud made false statements, but "you declined to charge him."

Mueller: I am not going to speak to the series of happenings

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Jim Himes is emphasizing important statements from Mueller Report, including: "Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome."

Mueller affirms

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff [Missed the rest of that]

Rep. Sewell is discussing pre-Trump Tower meeting email exchange.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Sewell is asking whether federal campaign finance laws prohibit a foreign national from making a donation of anything of value.

At meeting, the dirt on Clinton was not produced. They got upset, did they not?

Mueller: Generally yes.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Sewell: Top Trump campaign officials learned that the Russians wanted to help them by providing dirt on Hillary. Did anyone in the Trump campaign ever tell the FBI of that offer?

Mueller: I don't believe so

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Sewell: The campaign sought to hide the existence of the emails setting up meeting

Mueller: That is accurate

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Rep. Turner Ohio Republican. Holds up a velobound copy of the report with lots of red post it notes along the side.

Mueller objects to word collusion. It's much more accurately called conspiracy

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Turner does not like the word "exonerate." He says it's not a legal term, yet it was second to last word in the report.

Does the attorney general have the power to exonerate? He said there is no process or office of exoneration.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Turner asks Mueller to agree with him that the attorney general has no power to exonerate

Mueller: I am going to pass on that. [Doesn't want to be embroiled in a legal discussion].

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Very important exchange here between Turner and Mueller.

Mueller says he put that language in the report to make clear to Barr that he had not exonerated Trump

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Need to go back and watch the dialogue because Mueller was pushing back for a reason.

Turner is very agitated over this

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Following the greed thread, Rep. Carson is discussing Manafort meetings with Kilimnik (who is linked to Russian intelligence), and sharing of polling information. Private briefings on Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Minnesota.

Mueller confirms all of this

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Does this create a national security risk to share this private information with a foreign adversary

Mueller: I'm not going to speculate along those lines.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Mueller agreed with Carson that Manafort shared this information with the hope of payment.

Did this leave him vulnerable to blackmail by the Russians.

Mueller: That would generally be the case

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Republican rep asked whether the Trump campaign was involved in hacking of emails

Mueller indicated that his report did not cover that?

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Republican Rep: since report doesn't mention that Paul Manafort meet with Assange and it's not in your report then it didn't happen.

Mueller: "I'm not sure I agree with that assumption." Although he agreed it was not mention in the report.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Mueller said he did ask to expand scope of his investigation, but he would not respond to whether those requests were ever denied.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Rep Speier, California Dem begins by thanking Mueller, saying he is the greatest patriot in room.

Say Russian intervention was not just "sweeping and systematic" but also sinister.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Speier is discussing the Internet Research Agency (Russian) that was spreading social media to "invade" or election.

Would you agree it was not a hoax?

Mueller: Absolutely. It was not a hoax. . . The indictmetns we returned were substantial. We've underplayed that aspect

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Speier asked if Russia is looking for ways to interfere in the 2020 election

Mueller: Cannot answer that

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Speier wants him to tell the American people what he wants them to glean from the report.

"A flag to those of us who have some responsibility in this area. . . Don't let these problems linger."

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Schiff is now asking about conspiracy. But then yields to Representative Stewart, Republican from Utah.

Complains that "innocent people have been accused of very serious crimes."

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Stewart is making sweeping inaccurate statements about the report's findings

Now he's raising his voice complaining about leaks. Asks whether anyone on his team who leaked to CNN the raid on Roger Stone's home

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Mueller said that during an investigation, some persons are under a cloud, that's why we emphasize speed.

Was asked about the March 27th memo. Not sure when it was publicized. "But I do not believe we would be responsible for the leaks."

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Stewart accuses Mueller's team (not Mueller) or more than twenty leaks.

Regarding the March 27th letter, implication is that someone else (perhaps Barr's office?) leaked it

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Rep. Quigley, Illinois Dem asks Mueller what happens if the five-year statute of limitations for a crime runs because a president serves another term, then a president could be above the law.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Quigley: Is Wikileaks a hostile intelligence service?

Mueller: Absolutely and they are currently under indictment, Julien Assange is.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Quigley shows slides of Trump's many public statements praising Wikileaks (which is a hostile intelligence service). Asks Mueller how he reacts to that

Mueller: Problematic is an understatement . . giving boost to what seems to be illegal activity

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Crawford, Republican (from Arkansas, perhaps), is asking about Peter Strzok. Yielded time to Nunes. Oh, joy.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff Brief five-minute recess

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff We are back from the break. @ericswalwell asking questions. Immediately gets a "yes" from Mueller when he asks whether destroying evidence in connection with a proceeding generally shows consciousness of guilt.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Mueller believes it to be the case that use of encrypted communications and deletions of communications inhibited their investigation.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Swalwell is asking whether Trump ever met with Mueller in person. Mueller said he did not.

Yet Trump met with Putin in person and spoke with him on the phone many times.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Oh, someone is asking about the Steele Dossier. Must be a Republican. Cannot see her name. Why is it that none of the Republicans want to discuss the very concerning findings about Russia's criminal interference in our election?

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Nunes is talking again. Steele. Carter Page. Yawn.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep Joaquin Castro, Texas Dem (twin brother of presidential candidate). Michael Cohen and Trump Tower Moscow deal

Cohen lied to "minimize links between the project and Trump" and to "stick to the party line" that no connection existed between Trump and Russia

Mueller: Yes

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Castro asks whether the deal actually extended into summer 2016 when he was a candidate and whether there were discussions

Mueller: Also true, and part of the basis for the plea he entered for lying to Congress

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep. Hurd, Texas Republican is asking a series a questions about press reports

Also wants to know how do we prevent Russian intelligence and over adversaries do this again.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell "The ability of our intelligence agencies to work together" is critical. FBI, CIA, NSA and the rest. Legislation to require that should be enacted to make that happen quickly

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Denny Heck, Washington Dem explores the motives behind the interference. Thinks it was "to worship the almighty buck."

Revisiting the Trump Tower in Moscow. Trump stood to earn many millions of dollars, did they not, sir?

Mueller: True

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell It's been a long day. I need more coffee. Can't imagine how Mueller is doing in that crowded room under hot lights.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Missed this important comment from Mueller:

"They're doing it as we sit here, and I expect them to do it in the next campaign."

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Why does everyone keep yielded their time to Nunes. OTOH, he doesn't yell like Jim Jordan from Judiciary.

His voice is more like a dull drone that drills away at your very soul

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Nunes just said the words "compromising tapes" and even that is dull

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep Welch, Vermont Democrat, said, "did you find there was no collusion?"

Mueller is struggling for the word "conspiracy." Welch helped him.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Welch, goes through the various pieces of evidence to show encouragement of support from Russia, including Junior meeting in Trump Tower, and Trump calling on Russia to hack Hillary's personal emails, and Manafort shared private campaign data with Kiliminik, and . . .

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Welch says also campaign devised its strategy and messaging around leaks from wikileaks, and Junior communicated with Wikileaks

Mueller: yes and/or true to all that.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell 📌Welch say he understands that this did not create evidence beyond a reasonable doubt of conspiracy, but is this the new normal to encourage help from foreign adversary

Mueller: I hope this is not the new normal, but I fear it is.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Welch asks for some prevention ideas

Mueller emphasizes agencies sharing information, expertise, and targets

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep Sean Maloney, NY Dem asks about Appendix C of the report and decision not to do a sworn interview of the President. Why didn't you subpoena President?

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Mueller said negotiated for over a year. When they were almost toward the end of the investigation, they decided not to subpoena the President, He would fight, and it would drag on.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Maloney: What did you think of the President's written answers?

Mueller: Certainly not as useful as the interview would be.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Maloney, why did it stop being vital to subpoena the President? Asked him if he flinched. Didn't think so. Third explanation is that you didn't think you needed it. Refers to page 13 of volume II

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Nice

Maloney said report said they had "sufficient evidence of the president's intent to obstruct justice?"

Mueller said it was a balance.

Maloney is trying to pin it down. Sufficient evidence better than that delay?

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep. Val Demings, Florida Dem asks whether the President's answers were submitted under oath.

Mueller: Yes, they were.

He also said there were additional questions they wanted him to answer

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Demings asks whether he assessed the President's credibility

Mueller: Said by end he ended up with fair amount of information

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Could you say that the president was credible?

Mueller: I can't answer that question

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell When asked by Demings whether the president provided incomplete and untruthful answers, I think Mueller responded, "generally" but I need to go back and confirm.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep. Krishnamoorthi, ILL Dem, is asking what was outside President's purview. E.g. presidential money laundering not part. But Mueller would not respond to the question of whether he got tax returns. Would not respond to whether he investigated personal finanes of president

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Krishnamoorthi said Trump repeated many times in one press conference "I have nothing to do with Russia" even when he was trying to build Trump Tower. But your report does address at all whether Trump was compromised

Mueller: That's correct

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Reminded Mueller that he said he was concerned with the "systematic and sweeping fashion that Russians interfered in our Democracy."

Mueller said more needs to be done about Russia and other countries

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Nunes is wrapping things up to just thank Mueller

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Rep. Schiff is returning to some questions Rep. Wech asked earlier. Schiff said taking foreign help in a campaign is unethical.

Mueller: It's unethical and a crime in given circumstances

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff: We hold our elected officials to higher standards than merely avoiding criminality

Mueller: Absolutely

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff says unethical conduct, whether deception or financially related, leaves you exposed to blackmail, especially involving foreign parties

Mueller agreed

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff refers to Peskov. Presumably Russians could record conversation with Cohen about the Tower. But Trump denied, could leave him vulnerable to blackmail. Stuff of counterintelligence nightmares.

Also returns to greed motivating Trump.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Did Trump ever end that desire to build the tower in Moscow

Mueller: I'm not going to speculate on that

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff: "We are all left to wonder whether president is representing us or his financial interests."

Thanks Mueller for leading the investigation and for his testimony.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff wraps up/ Mueller's report tells story of Trump campaign so determined to conceal foreign help, that they risk going to jail by lying to you, FBI and Congress. And some did go to jail. And countless acts of obstruction by president. Anyone else would be indicted.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell You would not tell us whether anyone is looking into Russian money laundering, so we must find out. . . litany of areas that Congress must investigate.

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@RepAdamSchiff @AdamSchiff @ericswalwell Schiff also said Russians massively intervened in 2016 and plan to do so again in voting that begins in just 8 months. We need to harden our election infrastructure with paper trail and more.

The century old experiment we call American Democracy is worth cherishing.

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Alexander