Round to Trump

Published in El Tiempo
(Colombia) on 26 March 2019
by (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Brandee McGee. Edited by Patricia Simoni.
President of the United States Donald Trump dodged a bullet last week, after the report by Special Counsel Robert Mueller concluded no proof was found that the leader or anyone from his team conspired or colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 presidential campaign, in which he prevailed over Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

In U.S. legal language terms, "no proof found" signifies that the investigation did not find criminal activity by Trump, but neither did it exonerate him, an important nuance given that the leader is surely prepared to launch his reelection campaign for the 2020 election. Democrats are willing to call for the total release of the report to have all the elements of a trial or a window to permit discovery of some other strand of accusation.

Mueller has clearly left up in the air the obstruction of justice charge, resulting from money Trump supposedly paid to two women with whom he had sexual relations so they would not divulge their stories; although the leader himself, after becoming familiar with the summary of the report, said that it signified a total exoneration. In his opinion, Democrats are left without anything to try a political judgment against him.

But it is also probable that Mueller would not have insisted on the issue of obstruction of justice for a simple reason: If he did not prove the crime, how could he justify the obstruction? There are Democrats who think it is still possible.

Furthermore, it showed that Russia did interfere with the U.S. presidential campaign through “fake news,” disinformation and espionage campaigns, and divulgence of emails from Clinton's team, and that a minimum of 32 people have been charged with various crimes, among them at least five of Trump's inner circle, such as his former attorney, Michael Cohen, and his former campaign chief of staff, Paul Manafort, some with jail on the way. Sufficient for continued interest in knowing exactly what happened.

Also notable is the fact that during the 22-month investigation, Trump tried by all means possible to delegitimize and discredit Special Counsel Mueller, yet now praises Mueller’s behavior by saying that he acted the “honorable way,” in one of those turnarounds typical of such a celebrity president, similar to his call for an apology by the "progressive press" for what he called "unequal coverage" of the special prosecutor investigation. “They are a true ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE,” he trilled, very much in his style.

Greater than the Democratic vision, the Mueller report provides a unique recognition gradually clearing the path toward a bid for Trump's reelection. Now it is up to Democrats to polish up and present a solid candidate from among the bunch of applicants of various tendencies and ages in search of a leadership that challenges the egotistic and unilateral style of the controversial magnate.


El presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, se quitó la semana pasada un piano de encima luego de que el informe del fiscal especial Robert Mueller concluyó que no se encontraron pruebas de que el mandatario o alguien de su equipo conspiró o coordinó esfuerzos con Rusia para influir en la campaña presidencial del 2016, en la que se impuso sobre la candidata demócrata Hillary Clinton.

En los términos que maneja el lenguaje jurídico estadounidense, el ‘no haber encontrado pruebas’ significa que la investigación no halló delito en Trump, pero tampoco lo exonera, lo que es un matiz importante dado que el mandatario seguramente se prepara para lanzar su campaña a la reelección en las elecciones del 2020 y las toldas demócratas están dispuestas a exigir que se divulgue la totalidad del informe para tener todos los elementos de juicio o una ventana que permita hallar alguna otra veta de acusación.


Es claro que Mueller dejó en el aire el cargo de obstrucción a la justicia a raíz del dinero que habría pagado Trump a dos mujeres con las que sostuvo relaciones sexuales para que no divulgaran sus historias, aunque el propio mandatario, luego de conocer el resumen del informe, dijo que significaba una exoneración total. En su opinión, los demócratas se quedaron sin elementos para intentar un juicio político en su contra.

Pero también es probable que Mueller no insistiera en el asunto de la obstrucción de la justicia por una razón sencilla. Si no se comprobó el delito, ¿cómo se podría justificar la obstrucción? Hay demócratas que todavía piensan que es posible.

Más allá de eso, se demostró que Rusia sí interfirió en la campaña presidencial estadounidense a través de fake news, de campañas de desinformación y de espionaje y divulgación de los correos electrónicos del equipo de Clinton, y que como mínimo 32 personas han sido imputadas por delitos varios, entre ellos al menos cinco del círculo más cercano de Trump, como su exabogado Michael Cohen y su exjefe de campaña Paul Manafort, algunos con cárcel de por medio. Suficiente para que persista entre la gente el interés por saber qué ocurrió exactamente.

Llama también la atención el hecho de que durante los 22 meses que duró la investigación, Trump intentó por todos los medios deslegitimar y desacreditar al fiscal especial Mueller, pero ahora ensalza su comportamiento al decir que actuó de “manera honorable” en uno de esos giros acostumbrados en un presidente tan mediático, como el de exigirle a la “prensa progresista” una disculpa por lo que llamó “cubrimiento desequilibrado” de la investigación del fiscal especial. “Realmente son el enemigo del pueblo”, trinó muy en su estilo.

Aún más que la visión demócrata, el informe Mueller constituye un singular espaldarazo que va despejando de a pocos el camino del intento de reelección de Trump. Ahora les corresponde a los demócratas depurar y presentar una candidatura sólida de entre un ramillete de aspirantes de variadas tendencias y edades en la búsqueda de un liderazgo que desafíe el estilo personalista y unilateral del polémico magnate.
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