THE MUELLER HEARINGS (As some of us heard.)

(The second paragraph has been corrected to read "No one can deny that what the report revealed was true.) (There is also an additional response from Dr. Carin Horn.) As I am continuing to receive responses from my readers, I will try to add them directly to the text. The newest is one from Truman Conner. All of the respondents are currently Texas residents unless otherwise noted.. Thanks for your understanding.

Although I downloaded the complete Mueller Report, I have to admit I did not read it. I relied on news reports that detailed the important points as they understood them. Then, my son sent me a remarkable, hour-long video that contained readings by some well-known stars in the entertainment industry. Of course, they had to edit it and only read the highlights, but it is well worth watching even now. The Mueller Report That and all of the news pundits leading up to yesterday's Congressional hearings prepared me for them - I thought. 

Like many others that I've heard from, I was disappointed in the way Robert Mueller came across - a lot of it was due to the accusations of some of the Congressional members, notably the Republicans, and their rapid-fire delivery of the questions in the first session, which made it very difficult for anyone to understand them. Thus, Mueller sometimes stumbled over his answers. I guess I also expected some outrageous discovery that we weren't privy to beforehand. No one can deny that what the report revealed was true. The Republicans spent their time trying to destroy Mueller's reputation and integrity as well as that of others involved in gathering the damning evidence. But they never once gave evidence that the conclusions of the report were untrue.

Once all of the investigations are completed, and we are entitled to view Trump's finances - and their possible entanglement with foreign entities that are holding him hostage - I don't think anyone in the United States can refute the truth that he is the most corrupt, and absolutely the most incompetent president the United States has ever had. He and his administration have done their best to destroy our democracy, and have placed us in a dangerous position in the world. 

I agree with Nancy Pelosi that impeachment is not the answer as long as the Senate is Republican-controlled. The most obvious solution is to vote Trump and the Senators who are supporting him out of office.

The following views were sent to me at my request by some of my long-time friends as well as my son.

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The following is from C. Denson Hill (Denny), a professor of mathematics at Stony Brook University in New York. He has a second home in Poland where he lives when school is not in session. He was the first to converse with me on the hearings via email.

"I watched the whole thing live from Warsaw, and it was very tiring. During the first part, before I became fatigued, I wrote down these names:

Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-TX 4th Dist.

Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-TX 1st Dist.

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio 4th Dist.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-FLorida

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Florida

"Then I got too tired to continue.. To Texas, Ohio and Florida, I would say: It is unbelievable that you could be so stupid as to elect these baboons to represent you!!! Better to choose a random w**** from a house of ill repute, then at least you might find a modicum of honesty, integrity, and someone who does not vastly underestimate average human intelligence."..Denny

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My answer:

"I agree with you. Needless to say, I would like to kick the Reps from Texas in their respective rears. John Ratcliffe in particular was full of hate.. I noticed when he finished his tirade he couldn't get out of the chambers fast enough! He doesn't represent our district, but I'd still like to tell him off. Same is true of Gohmert. However, he graduated from Baylor, so he is probably a good Baptist. This may account for his support of Trump. He probably is an anti-vaxxer, an anti-abortionist, and thinks that if he is wrong and Trump is ousted, he'd love to see Pence in office! In my humble opinion!

"In the first session, I thought Mueller came across as old and confused. He redeemed himself somewhat in the second session. The interviewers in the first were rushing through their questions due to their five-minute time limits. I had a hard time understanding their questions as well.

"I thought the summations at the end were pretty easy for most to understand. Also, there are still ongoing investigations..perhaps/likely more indictments. So much is going on that Mueller was unable to speak of (due to ongoing investigations or classified material) that will possibly help indict the POTUS, hopefully all will come out before the election."..Marilyn

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"I fear that the vast majority of the people in the U.S. do not have the

attention span, or the patience, to glean the damaging info there. Barr and Company have muddied the waters way too much.

"And I also fear that, partly due to the corrosive effect of talk radio, (FOX News), etc., the GOP can still win simply by repeating over and over the words, 'socialist' and 'communist', independent of all other considerations. (To say nothing about Gerrymandering and the electoral college.) Sad.."
..C. Denson Hill

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"My very first impression is that Mueller does not enjoy speaking in public! He also has a very developed vocabulary and it seemed to go over the heads of some. Can y'all not retire Grandpa Gohmert??? Lord he is a nut ball!"...Rita Bauknight (North Carolina)

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"I am very disappointed in Mr. Mueller’s performance yesterday. He did confirm that Trump is the liar we all know, but did not really present any smoking guns after two years (at least that he was willing to talk about). I had put my hopes on much, much more."... June Curry (Oklahoma)

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This next one is from my Number One Son, Craig Young. He wrote this while in a spirited debate on his Facebook site:

"During his testimony today, Vietnam war hero Robert Mueller affirmed

that Cadet Bone Spurs Trump could be prosecuted for crimes (there will be more than just obstruction - there is still a counterintelligence investigation ongoing) once he leaves office. I take comfort in that.

"Mueller made it clear that because of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) opinion, he was precluded from indicting a sitting president. The report indicates the Constitution provides the only remedy, which is impeachment by the House and removal by the Senate. Mueller gave overwhelming evidence of 10 instances of obstruction of justice in his report. In fact, those of us outside the Fox News bubble know that almost 1,000 former federal prosecutors (both Republican and Democrat) signed a letter saying that any citizen other than a sitting president would easily be indicted for felonious obstruction.

"The bottom line? The Russians interfered (attacked us) in the 2016 presidential election to aid candidate Trump and harm candidate Clinton. The Trump campaign welcomed their help and even provided them with campaign polling data and battleground state strategies. Trump lied about having business dealings with Russia during the campaign (Trump Tower Moscow). Trump has demonstrated fealty to Vladimir Putin and denigrated our intelligence agencies. The Republican Party is aiding and abetting the most corrupt, dishonest, and incompetent president in the history of this nation."...Craig Young

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"Saw an interesting Internet 'headline' that said something along the lines of Mueller’s hearing was a Republican victory if you didn’t listen to it!!!!! Sure would be nice if we could all put the politics aside and honor each other as Americans.

ADDENDUM:

"My comment about putting politics aside was not intended to disparage anyone about  his/her political passion. I am a Registered Independent, (because it) is not allowed by the State of Texas to vote in a primary election without declaring a political party preference!!!! Some of your readers may not know that. Anyway, I follow world news and global opinions, especially those concerning our current administration. Unfortunately we appear to be a country of nonthinking idiots that lack the willpower to overcome the negativity that prevails and is the signature of the Trump administration.

"I don’t have an answer as to how we can fix our political differences but I know that the 2020 Democratic candidates for President must stop taking Trump’s confrontational bait and build a united policy that promotes our greatest good as individuals and a nation. Without a strong front for positive change and right human relations, Trump will win a second term.".. Dr. Carin Horn 

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"I did not watch the hearings, but instead monitored twitter and then read recaps/opinions in The Times this morning. My (VERY DISAPPOINTED) takeaway from the investigation and the hearings is that they were the product of a stand-up guy who understands that we are in some warped environment where it does not matter if the leader commits crimes."...Kevin Curry (Mexico ex-pat)

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"I watched about 90% of it and I feel like Mr. Mueller was set up as a patsy. All those words in that document! That in itself, was enough to drive someone crazy!

"And, now that they have done all this...what are they going to do?  No matter what one's party that they attach themselves to...what do we know that is going to better an everyday person's life?"
..Mary Smith Hendricks

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"Yes to all of the above regarding Mueller.  The Democratic Judiciary Committee's primary goal was to bring public awareness of Mueller's report to American people who either have not read the report, nor appreciate the gravity of the Trump administration's flagrant violation of the pertinent articles of the U.S. Constitution. Even after this six hours of testimony from Mueller, I think it is highly probable that a large element of non-educated don't have any idea about the consequences of Trump's presidency. Much of our citizenry don't have critical thinking ability, and you have no further to look than Ballinger, typical of today's voting demographics. 

"I don't recall who said, 'You can fool some of the people all of the time; all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.' (It was Lincoln.) First time in my life I am seeing these words of wisdom questionable as so many of our people, and members of U.S. Senate and House are unwilling to stand up for our democracy. What a sad commentary, isn't it?"..Truman Samuel Conner

(Truman's first response is listed in the "comments" section below.)

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The fallout from yesterday's hearings will continue. The appeal cases to force the witnesses who have been held in contempt for Trump forbidding them to testify, should enlighten us more. Especially his attorney Don McGhan's testimony.

I would still like to hear from more of you regarding your feelings about this subject. Do you believe what's been given to us in the Report so far? Do you agree with the characterization of Trump and his campaign (assisted by the Russians)? Let me know.

Peace,

Marilyn

An excellent review of Mueller's testimony:
Actually, Robert Mueller Was Awesome