Democratic presidential hopeful Julián Castro on Tuesday said he’d like to get more “clarity” from former special counsel Robert Mueller on exactly why Mr. Mueller declined to recommend charges against President Trump stemming from the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
“I want to know why he did not … recommend charges against this president. He lists 10 different instances where the president obstructed or attempted to obstruct justice,” Mr. Castro said on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
Mr. Castro, a former secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Barack Obama, acknowledged standing Department of Justice guidelines that say a sitting president generally cannot be indicted.
“But I’d like to get more clarity on that,” he said. “Because basically, what you have really is a president who, but for the fact that he’s in that Oval Office, would be under indictment right now.”
Mr. Mueller is scheduled to testify on Capitol Hill Wednesday, although it’s unclear how far he’ll stray from his written report on Russian interference.
The report said his investigation did not establish that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia in its efforts. On the question of whether Mr. Trump obstructed justice in trying to hamper the probe, Mr. Mueller said that while the report didn’t conclude Mr. Trump committed a crime, it also didn’t exonerate him.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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