Obstruction all through Mueller's report
Barbara Foreman, in her letter of May 8, overlooks one important facet about the Mueller Report. He did, in fact, conclude there were impeachable offenses committed by Donald Trump. Mueller listed 10 such, including telling Don McGahn to fire James Comey, then lie about it. This goes beyond obstruction of justice and into suborning perjury. William Barr did not correctly describe Mueller's report in his four-page summary, since he overlooked -- or deliberately omitted -- any reference to the issues Mueller mentioned. Barr, for his part, is living up to his past. He has long been a proponent of an almost imperial presidency, going back to his days in the Bush 41 administration. But his willingness to overlook transgressions that are obvious to anyone who reads the report is a disservice to the American people and the Constitution he is sworn to uphold.
I am not alone in my conclusion regarding Donald Trump's obstruction; more than 700 former Federal prosecutors signed onto a letter stating they would have charged Trump with obstruction had the offenses mentioned in Mueller's report been committed by anyone else. The only thing saving Trump is a Department of Justice policy not to indict a sitting president. Mueller was aware of this, deferring to the Constitutionally prescribed method of dealing with a miscreant president, impeachment. Mrs. Foreman is correct in that the FBI did its job uncovering the truth. That the Attorney General refuses to face the reality of the findings is troubling.
Finally, Mrs. Foreman lists a number of headlines regarding the Trump administration, asking if not acting "presidential" tips the scales against them. Indeed it does. The president, by virtue of his "bully pulpit" sets the tone for the nation. His demeanor has an effect on the way Americans behave. Donald Trump has made his lack of decorum the hallmark of his presidency, whether it is bragging falsely about the crowds at his inauguration, or making fun of a reporter with a disability, or attacking John McCain, who has more fortitude in his little finger than Donald Trump ever will have, and who served America his whole adult life, both before and after his death; stating about white supremacists at Charlottesville that "there are good people on both sides," and saying things on a daily basis that are demonstrably untrue. And ask Arkansas pecan and soybean growers how well the trade war is working out for them. All of this diminishes anything positive Donald Trump might accomplish.
Tom Beckett
Siloam Springs
Editorial on 05/15/2019