Pundits Fry Mueller for ‘Shaky’ Performance

Political pundits on both sides of the aisle criticized former special counsel Robert Mueller for appearing unprepared during his Wednesday congressional testimony, and questioned the utility of the hearing given Mueller’s refusal to speak to information not included in his final report.

Liberal CNN commentator Chris Cillizza called Mueller’s performance “shaky,” citing his repeated requests for clarification and repetition from lawmakers, as well as an apparent contradiction in his testimony, which occurred when he was asked if collusion was, in effect, a colloquial synonym for criminal conspiracy. Mueller answered that question in the affirmative in his report but testified Wednesday that the words were not synonymous before reverting back to the answer provided in his report.

Cilizza writes:

If Democrats hoped that Mueller would easily bat away Republican attacks — on him and on his report — they have been sorely disappointed in the opening moments of his testimony. Mueller seemingly contradicted himself (and the report) when he told Doug Collins, the ranking Republican member on the committee, that collusion and conspiracy were not the same thing.

Mueller also seemed to struggle to hear and/or understand questions from member of both sides as well as to find various references members were making to the Mueller report, asking for questions to be repeated. Democrats viewed the hearing as a chance for the public to hear what the President did (and didn’t do) from a straight-out-of-central-casting prosecutor. Mueller isn’t coming across like that so far.

Citing Mueller’s repeated requests that lawmakers provide citations so he could continuously refer to his report, Fox News anchor Chris Wallace called the performance “a disaster for the reputation of Robert Mueller.”

“I think this has been a disaster for the Democrats and I think it’s been a disaster for the reputation of Robert Mueller. He has seemed very uncertain with his brief. He doesn’t seem to know things that are in the report,” Wallace told Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum during Fox News’ coverage of the House hearings.

Fox News anchor Bret Baier also criticized Mueller’s deliberate approach to answering lawmakers’ questions, calling it “halting, slow and painful.”

David Axelrod, president Obama’s former chief of staff, pointed out that Mueller’s testimony would inevitably disappoint Democratic partisans who were hoping he’d provide new fodder with which to tar the president and further an impeachment effort.

Liberal MSNBC commentator Chris Hayes pointed out that Democratic lawmakers’ efforts to compel Mueller to criticize the president were futile since, as Mueller outlined in his report, DOJ guidelines prevent the indictment of a sitting president and prosecutors are barred from tarring the reputation of someone they haven’t charged.