House GOP clears Trump in Russia probe
What happened
Republicans abruptly ended the House Intelligence Committee’s yearlong investigation into Russian election interference this week, saying they had found no evidence of collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign, and—disputing the unanimous findings of the intelligence community—no evidence that the Kremlin favored President Trump in the 2016 race. In a 150-page draft report that they refused to show the committee’s Democratic members before the announcement, Republicans wrote that while Russia had carried out “active measures” during the campaign, there was no indication those activities were intended to boost Trump. Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas), who headed the House investigation, said the panel did identify some “inappropriate meetings” between Trump campaign aides and Russian officials, but insisted those contacts were simply the result of “bad judgment.” Trump cheered the report, tweeting that the committee had “FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF COLLUSION.”
The committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), called the announcement a “tragic milestone for this Congress,” saying Republicans had “placed the interests of protecting the president over protecting the country.” Democrats plan to release their own minority report laying out “significant evidence” of collusion. Several Republicans also voiced criticism, with Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) saying there was clear evidence Russia favored Trump over Hillary Clinton. Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) said the House investigation had “gone completely off the rails.”
What the columnists said
Collusion? What collusion? said Byron York in WashingtonExaminer.com. Yes, the committee’s findings “are partisan.” But Republicans spent 14 months poring over the evidence, interviewing 73 witnesses and reviewing some 30,000 documents. They examined the Trump Tower meeting in June 2016 between campaign aides and Russians; they looked at the activities of Trump advisers George Papadopoulos and Carter Page. And they “could not find a thread connecting events into a narrative of collusion.”
“It’s amazing how hard it is to find something when you are not looking for it,” said Max Boot in WashingtonPost.com. House Republicans refused to call key witnesses, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and did nothing when others, like former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, refused to answer questions. This wasn’t an investigation, “but a cover-up.”
Trump and his supporters are now “declaring the case closed,” said Rick Wilson in TheDailyBeast.com. But the Senate and special counsel Robert Mueller “have other ideas.” They are proceeding “carefully and methodically” with their own investigations. Mueller has already indicted 13 Russian citizens and four Trump associates, and will eventually reveal the full extent of his findings. If he does find proof of collusion, said Jeremy Stahl in Slate.com, House Republicans will be left with an ugly legacy: “When they were called on to uncover the truth about Russia and the Trump campaign, they chose to abnegate their duty.”
