This guy basically twisted himself in knots trying to justify the "witch hunt" but in the end even he couldn't rationalize it's purpose and usefulness
'Where is the collusion?' Answers to all your questions about the Russia investigation
By Chris Megerian
Aug 31, 2018 | 3:00 AM
| Washington
The news flooding out of the Russia investigation can feel relentless, a nonstop torrent of indictments, plea deals and legal maneuvering. President Trump regularly blasts the probe as a “witch hunt” and denies any wrongdoing. “Where is the collusion?” he demanded in a recent rally.
The November midterm elections are looming, so it’s a good time to take stock of what special counsel Robert S. Mueller III has done so far and what could happen next.
Let’s get right to the point. Has anyone found any collusion?
The short answer is that no U.S. citizens have been charged with working with the Russians to influence the 2016 presidential election.
So what are all these criminal charges about?
You can separate the charges into two categories. The first includes the indictments of 25 Russians for allegedly interfering in the election, either through spreading misinformation on social media or hacking email accounts of Democrats and releasing them online. Charges include conspiracy, identity theft and money laundering, and some of the accused Russians are military intelligence officers.
The second category is people close to Trump who have run afoul of the law. Two of them, former national security advisor Michael T. Flynn and former campaign foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, have pleaded guilty to lying to investigators.
Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was convicted of tax evasion and bank fraud. He faces a second trial this month on related charges. Manafort’s former deputy, Rick Gates, pleaded guilty to false statements and conspiracy, then testified against him.
Why is Manafort being prosecuted for financial crimes? What does that have to do with Russia and the election?
The charges aren’t related to the presidential campaign. Mueller began probing Manafort because of his connections to Russian interests, particularly the pro-Kremlin political party in Ukraine that he advised. But Mueller was also authorized to investigate “any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation.” A federal judge declined to throw out the charges against Manafort when defense lawyers argued that the special counsel had overstepped his authority.
You forgot Michael Cohen. What’s going on with him? Does that have anything to do with Russia?
Trump’s former personal lawyer pleaded guilty to tax evasion, bank fraud and campaign finance violations. The case started with Mueller, but he referred it to federal prosecutors in New York. The charges don’t involve Russia, but Cohen directly implicated the president in a criminal scheme. He told the court that Trump directed him to arrange $280,000 in hush money payments to two women shortly before the 2016 election, violating the law because the money was intended to serve a political purpose, wasn’t disclosed and exceeded contribution limits.
So none of the charges against Trump allies have anything to do with Russia?
It’s not that clear cut. Some of the charges are related to Russia even though they don’t allege that specific acts were taken during the presidential campaign.
Could Trump be charged with a crime?
It’s unlikely. Justice Department guidelines say a president cannot be indicted while in office, and there are no signs that Mueller — who technically works for the department even though he functions more like an independent prosecutor — is considering overruling that.
So that’s it? No matter what he did, the president doesn’t face any legal threat?
Trump isn’t invulnerable, but he doesn’t face the same kind of exposure as an average citizen. Mueller has the option to write a report on his findings and present it to Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein, who oversees the special counsel’s work. The report could be made public or presented to Congress at that point.
If the report includes strong evidence of wrongdoing by the president, there could be political repercussions. Congress could hold hearings or even try to impeach Trump, a step that becomes more likely if Democrats win back control of the U.S. House in this year’s midterm elections.
Voters also have the final say. If they don’t like what they’ve learned about Trump’s actions or his associates, they can vote him out of office in 2020.
more:
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-russia-investigation-qa-20180830-story.html