The Atlantic

Mueller Breaks His Silence—Without Breaking Protocol

The career G-man is bound by the rules. He made it clear that the president is bound only by Congress.
Source: Kevin Lamarque / Reuters / Alex Brandon / AP / The Atlantic

Robert Mueller isn’t letting Congress off the hook.

The special counsel on Wednesday used his first public comments in more than two years to lay out the limits of his position—both as he pursued the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible obstruction of justice by President Donald Trump, and in his ability to decide what should happen as a result of his 448-page report.

All told, the image and sound of the scripted, occasionally halting words of the former FBI director—previously seen only in B-roll footage and a limited sampling of

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic5 min read
The Strangest Job in the World
This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors’ weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here. The role of first lady couldn’t be stranger. You attain the position almost by accident, simply by virtue of being married to the president
The Atlantic8 min readAmerican Government
The Return of the John Birch Society
Michael Smart chuckled as he thought back to their banishment. Truthfully he couldn’t say for sure what the problem had been, why it was that in 2012, the John Birch Society—the far-right organization historically steeped in conspiracism and oppositi
The Atlantic3 min readDiscrimination & Race Relations
The Legacy of Charles V. Hamilton and Black Power
This is an edition of Time-Travel Thursdays, a journey through The Atlantic’s archives to contextualize the present and surface delightful treasures. Sign up here. This week, The New York Times published news of the death of Charles V. Hamilton, the

Related Books & Audiobooks