Democracy left defenseless
Mueller Report reveals “sweeping” attack on United States democracy, apathetic response from Trump
Eric Boose / Opinion Editor / The USD Vista
If one of the cornerstones of a democratic nation is free and fair elections, the United States may be less democratic than we all thought. While the Mueller Report contains many causes for concern, the emphatic statement that the Russian government “interfered in the 2016 presidential election in a sweeping and systematic fashion” should be terrifying. Even more terrifying, the report concludes that not only did the Trump campaign know about Russian interference, but that lies told by the administration actively hindered the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s inquest into that meddling. Our democracy was attacked, and the president is letting our attackers off the hook.
According to Mueller’s report, Russian election interference took the forms of a social media “information warfare” campaign, as well as hacking and releasing documents from the Clinton campaign. The information warfare campaign, funded by a Russian oligarch with purported ties to Vladimir Putin, was designed specifically to “undermine the U.S. electoral system.” The program involved Russian operatives posing as American citizens or grassroots political organizations with the express goal of criticizing Hillary Clinton and supporting Donald Trump. All told, the Russian social media campaign reached at least 29 million Americans on Facebook alone, but that number may be as high as 126 million. While American citizens and interest groups have every right to criticize and support political candidates in this country, foreign influence is highly regulated. The operatives who conducted the information warfare campaign are charged with “participating in a conspiracy to defraud the United States.” The United States was defrauded. Not to mention, Russian agents hacked into Democratic Party computers and email accounts and released sensitive information. It would be no stretch to classify such hacking as espionage, cyber warfare, or both. At best, the United States was the victim of a deliberate attack by a less-than-friendly nation. At worst, the United States was, for a moment in time, not an entirely democratic nation.
In any case, the commander in chief has a responsibility to respond quickly and appropriately. In the months leading up to his election and the years following it, President Trump has failed to do so. For the duration of the FBI’s investigation into possible election interference, Trump pressured then-FBI Director James Comey to drop the investigation or at least publicly state that Trump had no connection to Russian interference. When Comey did neither, Trump fired him. After the Special Counsel was appointed, Trump and his associates continued to impede the investigation into possible election interference. Twice in the first month of the Special Counsel’s investigation, including the day the investigation began, Trump attempted to fire Mueller. Beyond his attempts to have the Special Counsel removed, Trump took direct action to hide evidence both linking his campaign to Russian interference and evidence to suggest Trump was impeding the investigation. The investigation found that Michael Cohen lied to Congress at his 2017 hearing in order to stick to a “party line” created by the administration. In his report, Mueller states that “those lies materially impaired the investigation of Russian election interference.” Also in 2017, Trump instructed White House Counsel Donald McGahn to create a false report “stating that he had not been ordered to have the Special Counsel removed.” There is no doubt that Trump’s actions in response to the investigation into Russian election interference are counterproductive. Plainly, Trump’s behavior is irresponsible and un-presidential.
While the degree of Russian interference in the 2016 election, as well as the hostile nature of the administration’s response to the subsequent investigation, are made clear by the Mueller Report, not much else is. With respect to possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian operatives, the report concludes that while “the investigation established that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome, and that the Campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts, the investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.” In regard to possible obstruction of justice, the Office of the Special Counsel stated, “If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did commit obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, however, we are unable to reach that judgement….Accordingly, while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”
It is important to note that while the report does not directly implicate Trump in criminal activity, the report does not, in any way, prove his innocence. The report lists 10 separate instances which could constitute an obstruction of justice offense, including the president’s attempt to have the Special Counsel removed, the president’s firing of Comey, and the Trump Campaign’s response to reported ties to Russia. This lack of closure leaves the American people, especially Congress, with a decision to make. Some Democrats in the House of Representatives are strongly considering impeachment. If Trump is impeached, he will face a trial in the Senate to be removed from office. If he is still in office next fall, he will face a different, much larger test – the 2020 presidential election. At that point, voters will have every right to see themselves as the judge and jury in a nationwide trial. However, to do so would minimize the importance of the election. The 2020 presidential election can not simply ask American people if they would like four more years of Trump or simply someone else. With the Democrats fielding the most primary candidates in American history and one Republican primary challenger already declared with others considering bids, voters must choose the two candidates who they believe are most fit to do the job. Our democracy may not survive another election in which Americans feel they must choose between the lesser of two evils.
Donald Trump consistently downplayed the severity of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Actions he took as both a candidate and as president impaired the investigation into that interference to a degree which could constitute obstruction of justice. Those actions permitted an attack against our democracy, and are unacceptable from the President of the United States.