MSM Talking Point: "Trump Not Exonerated"

This article first appeared in New English Review.


"Guilty until exonerated"


There isn't much to add to what has already been said about Robert Mueller's catastrophic performance yesterday, but having followed the reportage of Fox News, CNN and MSNBC, there is a very important point to be made. While Fox News correctly observed that the idea of impeaching President Trump is now a joke, the talking heads at the other two cable news networks were running a by-line at the bottom of the TV screen-and stressing that- Mueller did not exonerate Trump.

Even before yesterday's horror show, Mueller had been criticized for stating that his (?) investigation  and report had not "exonerated" Trump as to the question of obstruction. In fact, exoneration has no legal place in American jurisprudence. The principle is "innocent until proven guilty" not "guilty until exonerated". Indeed, it is highly improper for Mueller or any prosecutor to make such a statement. You either charge someone or you walk away and keep your mouth shut. The legal burden is not upon the President or any other American to be exonerated.

All of this was lost on CNN and MSNBC  though even they had to confess that Mueller had laid an egg the size of which has not been seen since dinosaurs roamed the earth. Yet, the only talking points they had left were that Mueller-in his most animated moment- had stressed that he had not exonerated Trump, that Russian meddling was not a hoax, and that he had not conducted a witch hunt against the President. The countless times Mueller had refused to answer questions and the embarrassing points brought out by Republican representatives were lost beneath their radar.

That Russian meddling in the 2016 election was real and not a hoax, I would argue that Trump's alleged connection to it was a hoax, one cleverly concocted by disgraced leaders at the FBI and others. That right there argues that the investigation into Trump and his campaign aides was a witch hunt though no charges were brought against the President after two years of investigation.

Shamefully, the mainstream media is clinging to those last talking points in the face of an embarrassing defeat. They are still trotting out Democrats who insist that an impeachment inquiry must be launched in Congress because, after all, Mueller did not "exonerate" Trump. Others had their lives ruined over the course of this investigation.

Robert Mueller, notwithstanding his past accomplishments as a soldier and civil servant, has tarnished his final reputation. It is sad, but not as sad as the damage that has been brought upon our legal system. Equally sad is what this entire saga has done to the profession of journalism. I had heretofore thought that they couln't sink any lower. It seems the ocean has no floor.