Former special counsel Robert Mueller, is sworn in before he testifies before the House Judiciary Committee hearing on his report on Russian election interference, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Wednesday, July 24, 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

A few days ago, I opined that today’s hearings with Robert Mueller before Congress would be a total dud. I said that nothing worthwhile would come from them. I also, even though I didn’t write it at the time, felt that Mueller would likely come in and be sharp, able to deflect questioning with some semblance of skill while sticking to his report.

I was wrong. Today was not a dud. It was an abject disaster for Robert Mueller and the Democrats

We actually learned a lot. For instance, that Mueller was simply a figurehead who had very questionable knowledge of his own report. He didn’t know who Fusion GPS was. He claimed the Steele dossier, which was directly related to Russian election interference, was “outside” his purview. We also learned that Mueller is not the sharp edged, ruthless prosecutor he’s been built up as. In fact, he presented himself as a man not in control of all his faculties. He stammered, constantly complained he couldn’t hear, repeated himself, got confused multiple times, and contradicted his own past statements.

In essence, Robert Mueller made the case today, inadvertently, that Republicans have been making for years.

https://twitter.com/seanmdav/status/1154058566652833792

In fact, he comes across as completely out of it, a figurehead to protect those who were actually running the probe. That so many Clinton allies were running the probe without real oversight from Mueller (or any skepticism from the media) is suddenly difficult to ignore. https://t.co/Zf2ot6zhMm

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) July 24, 2019

It wasn’t just Republicans pointing out how bad this was for Democrats and Mueller though. Here’s Laurence Tribe, a crazed Trump opponent who’s never met a conspiracy theory he wasn’t willing to fluff. Today’s outcome was even too much for him to spin.

Much as I hate to say it, this morning’s hearing was a disaster. Far from breathing life into his damning report, the tired Robert Mueller sucked the life out of it. The effort to save democracy and the rule of law from this lawless president has been set back, not advanced.

— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) July 24, 2019

Tribe is right in a sense. This was a disaster and it did certainly set back the efforts to get Donald Trump, but that’s precisely because the rule of law was recognized. Republican members of the committees, in what was a pretty shocking display of competence, actually did an incredible job at exposing Mueller and his investigation for what it was. Some examples were shared on RedState earlier today, such as Matt Gaetz grilling Mueller on the Steele dossier and Jim Jordan evicerating Mueller on not charging Joseph Mifsud for lying to the FBI.

Things were so bad for Mueller and the Democrats that even MSNBC had to admit it.

MSNBC’s Jeremy Bash complains Mueller “sucked the life out” of report, “set back” efforts to impeachhttps://t.co/q6DWuqvSf1 pic.twitter.com/xxVBG5PKXt

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 24, 2019

They’d eventually get Rachel Maddow on the phone to sooth their souls with more conspiratorial nonsense, but for a moment, even the most anti-Trump forces in the media saw the writing on the wall.

This is over.

The American people do not care about this issue and every minute the Democrats spend continuing to push it is only going to hurt their case in 2020. Adam Schiff can continue to lie to to voters but no one is even paying attention to him anymore. It has reached the point where all of the machinations appear pathetic and contrived.

Two things died today. One, Democrat hopes of getting the ball rolling on impeachment are over. Perhaps more surprisingly though is the death of the myth of Robert Mueller. He was supposed to be the finest, smartest, fairest among us. SNL sang Christmas songs to him and liberal sites sold prayer candles bearing his image. Establishment Republicans assured us of his honor and ability. In the end, Mueller himself was revealed to be a sham. He wasn’t even in control of his own investigation, nor did he show any capacity to lead it.

The former special prosecutor refused to answer questions 198 times today, mostly about things he inexplicably refused to investigate, including the origins of the investigation, as well as possible conspiracy between the Democrats and foreign actors (i.e. Hillary Clinton and Christopher Steele). This wasn’t a sharp, forceful investigator on display. This was a man out of his depth, cowering and unable to answer the most basic inquiries.

Worse, Mueller’s actions were contrary to everything we’ve been assured about our justice system.

"So essentially your report does everything AG Reno warned against. You compiled a summary of nearly 450 pages of the very worst information you gathered against the target of your investigation, the President of the United States, knowing you were not recommending charges, (1/3) pic.twitter.com/vW7eMpJ60L

— Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (@GReschenthaler) July 24, 2019

I’m well versed in the American justice system. The drafting and publication of some of the information in this report without an indictment, without prosecution, flies in the face of American justice. And frankly, I find those facts, and this entire process, unamerican." (3/3)

— Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (@GReschenthaler) July 24, 2019

I’ve seen some Republicans of a certain stripe opine that today wasn’t necessary. That there was no reason to go hard on Mueller. I completely disagree. Today was absolutely necessary. After three years of this nonsense, there needed to be a reckoning. Every inconsistency, double standard, and partisan bias needed to be laid bare. The ridiculous canard of impeachment needed to not just be countered, but destroyed.

Towards the end of the hearings, I was actually starting to feel sorry for Robert Mueller. This was a man who never should of been given the position he was in. Regardless, there was a certain cosmic justice to this entire thing blowing up the face of the Democrats. They’ve led a witch hunt (and continue to lead one) for years that has culminated in vast nothingness. That deserved to be exposed and exposed it was.

Perhaps this will serve as a lesson to prevent future overreach? We know it won’t though. News rooms across America are busy, desperately trying to spin the dumpster fire that happened today into some kind of liberal victory, but don’t be gaslit. This was a total disaster for Robert Mueller and the Democrats.

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