Robert Mueller had a mixed week. On the one hand, he testified for six or seven hours before two House Committees and managed to make both Democrats and Republicans look silly. Mueller said his report was his testimony, and he generally stuck to his guns on that. And in doing so, he made a mess of the ulterior motives of both parties.
The Rs wanted to talk about the inception of the investigation, and of course Mueller was not allowed to talk about that, even if he had been so inclined. The Ds attempted to get him to read his report to them;for some reason, many still haven't read the darn thing. That approach failed beautifully, as he had them read key sections out loud instead of the other way around. I don't know what the Dems were hoping to accomplish with the hearings, but all they got was confirmation of what was already documented in the report, and in the statement Mueller made back in May.
On the other hand, Mueller came off as bit befuddled, they say, asking for questions to be repeated, or being unable to quote chapter and verse about footnotes that were in the 400+page report, or for sounding less than clear in his responses. Next steps are also not clear, now that they made him do what he didn't want to do.
While the House fiddles, the 2020 campaign burns, or something.
The president had a similarly mixed week. On the one had, Mueller basically called him a liar, using the facts of the investigation to counter the president's repeated fake statements. And of course the president attacked Mueller, as he does anyone who crosses him. And, the economy slowed a bit in the second quarter, which is not great news.
But, he ended the week with an agreement with Guatemalan officials that requires immigrants to seek asylum there, instead of here in the US. The deal came on the heels of threats of tariffs and even a "Guatemalan ban" against immigrants from that country. The agreement also includes provisions that will make it easier for some Guatemalans to come here to work.
And, in breaking news, the administration will be able to use 'stolen funds' - money appropriated by Congress for specific other purposes - to be used for construction of the the wall while the court cases on that issue continue. The Supreme Court refused to issue a stay, appearing to point to a favorable decision for the president should the case make it to the SCOTUS docket in the future.
Who else had a good week? Let's close with the guy who created the fake presidential seal. In case you missed it, when Trump appeared at before conservatives at a Turning Point USA gathering, the seal behind him was not the real one. It had a Russian double-headed eagle clutching golf clubs and cash, and a motto stating, in Spanish, "45 is a puppet."
Charles Leazott, who designed the parody seal, is a former Republican, because of Trump. He's thrilled that someone thought to use it in this way, saying the person "was either wildly incompetent or the best troll ever - either way, I love them."
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