Donald Trump slow walked negotiations regarding sitting down with Mueller's Team. The result...

[Tom Rinaldo]

He ran out the clock on Mueller over the course of almost a year of protracted "negotiations" and no sit down interview was ever conducted. Instead a limited set of written replies to censored questions was submitted with no follow up to those answers possible. It clearly hampered Mueller's investigation and we will never know how things might be different if either 1) Trump testified in person under oath OR 2) A subpoena to force Trump to testify had been issued in a timely enough manner to allow Mueller's investigation to remain ongoing until the Courts had exhausted Trump's attempt to avoid that subpoena, thus forcing his live testimony with follow up questions.

Now the same has happened in regards to Mueller's Report itself and the ability of Democrats to follow through forcefully in a timely manner. Congress is recessing for its summer break, much of the public is in summer vacation mode itself. It is hard to make old news fresh again even with expert compelling testimony at a hearing months removed from when the report was issued. Republicans have slow walked every step of compliance with Congressional constitutionally mandated oversight. How many subpoenas for witness testimony has the House issued that Trump's Administration is fighting? I've lost count. And of course those subpoenas were only issued after extended time consuming negotiations came up empty handed.

Timing may not be everything, but it sure as hell is a lot of it. Trump won a critical victory by foot dragging around his direct testimony. That delay may literally have changed the course of history. Once it became readily apparent that Democrats were loath to begin impeachment hearings without first laying the groundwork to build public support for that move with public oversight hearings,Trump knew how to respond. Those hearings remain hamstrung because key witnesses refuse to appear. When and if they ever do public attention will by then be muted by the passage of time and countless other intervening events.

A Democratic failure to initiate an Impeachment inquiry until Administration witnesses cooperate leaves Trump in control of the clock. That sure worked out well for him the last time.

[TwilightZone]

1. He was never going to testify in person.

Everyone knew that. Mueller knew it too, but had to go through the motions.

As for delays, that's how the process works. Since you seem to think you know how to force them to comply, perhaps you should share that knowledge with Nadler, et al.

[Tom Rinaldo]

2. That missed my point

The set up was first get them to testify, then we can use their testimony to build support for impeachment. We already had grounds to move toward impeachment (and impeachment hearings actually provide more legal avenues to compel testimony) but holding off on that until certain key witnesses first testified left Trump's team in control of the clock vis a vis an impeachment inquiry commenting.

[Eliot Rosewater]

3. Didnt you hear the news, GOP no longer have to honor subpoenas or if they do they sure as hell

dont have to tell the truth.

Sure, a few liars went to prison but our system has been destroyed by putin and bannon.


We were attacked and are being attacked now.

Key witnesses will either not appear or will lie. NO system of laws is designed to deal with that and it is NOT the Democrats fault.

[Tom Rinaldo]

4. Democrats need to clearly stand with the Constitution

Let Republicans stand against it. Let those be the battle lines. And that includes us invoking the constitutional remedy for unconstitutional behavior.

[Nevermypresident]

6. K & R

[Nevermypresident]

5. This sentence in your excellent OP makes my blood run especially cold.

"When and if they ever do public attention will by then be muted by the passage of time and countless other intervening events." I regret to say I believe the clock has run out...and it's a grave mistake.

Speaker Pelosi has played a large roll in this as well, much to my dismay.

[Timewas]

7. We were Played...

And I mean we the people, the rethugs, Mueller included played the entire game their way...

[Tom Rinaldo]

8. We don't have an Independent Counsel statute any longer

I don't think Mueller played us, but he stayed within the confines of the investigation that the Trump Justice Department established, which it seems included NOT following the money. We control the House...