Benjamin Wittes: Mueller Bows Out: What Does Congress Do Now?
https://www.lawfareblog.com/mueller-bows-out-what-does-congress-do-now
Mueller Bows Out: What Does Congress Do Now?
By Benjamin Wittes
Wednesday, May 29, 2019, 1:18 PM
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Mueller is not showing up. But he has given Congress a highly-detailed guideone might even call it a road mapto whom it need to hear from and what questions they need to be asked.
Boiling all of this down, what emerges are a few simple guidepost principles for effective post-Mueller congressional oversight:
First, dont focus on piercing the redactions in the report. Take the deal the Justice Department is offering and check out the almost-wholly-unredacted version on offer.
Second, focus instead on highlighting the presidential conduct described in the unredacted sections. Congresss specific role right now is in holding live hearings which put flesh on the dry narrative bones of the Mueller report.
Third, focus litigation effortsas the House is already doingon obliterating the presidents claims that he gets to second-guess the legitimacy of Congresss legislative purpose and then on establishing that there is no principle of testimonial immunity for White House aides.
Fourth, defer executive privilege litigation to the extent necessary by agreeing to limit questioning of White House aides to matters specifically covered by the Mueller report. Litigate later, if need be, over additional testimony from these witnesses.
Proceeding in accordance with these principles would give coherence to congressional investigative efforts. It would avoid getting bogged down in the quicksand in which Trump has sought to mire these efforts. And it would help as well to establish answers to some legal questions about Congresss oversight powers about which lack of clarity currently is empowering Trumps abuses.
Its a shame that Mueller is not showing up. But Congress can make do without him.