Mueller Tells GOP Congressman That Trump Can Be Charged With a Crime After Leaving Office

It is not really surprising that Robert Mueller would tell the House Judiciary Committee, if asked, that a president can be charged with a crime after he leaves office.

What is surprising is that it would be a Republican who would elicit that answer at Wednesday’s hearing. Whoops!

The offender, from the GOP’s point of view, was Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado. Buck had asked Mueller if there was “sufficient evidence” to charge President Trump with obstruction of justice. Buck was perhaps expecting to hear the word “No.”

Instead, Mueller responded that he “did not make that calculation.” Pressed by an incredulous Buck, the former special counsel cited the Nixon-era Office of Legal Counsel opinion that a sitting president cannot be charged with a crime as being a motivating factor in that decision.

Buck then asked, for some reason, “Could you charge the president with a crime after he left office?”

“Yes,” Mueller responded.

Buck was trying to clarify something that was apparently only confusing to him, and stumbled right into an answer that the president won’t want to hear.

So now Trump will be running for re-election with the fear of being charged with a crime as soon as he leaves office on his mind. It’s going to be ugly.

Watch the video above, via CNN.