After taking the weekend to pore over the Mueller report, US Attorney General William Barr has sent Congress his four-page summary of the "principal conclusions" from the special counsel's 675-day investigation into the Trump campaign's alleged ties to Russia. The bottom line according to AG Barr: "The investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities."
On the question of obstruction of justice, Barr writes that while Mueller's report "does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him."
Barr says he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein concluded that the evidence "is not sufficient to establish that the President committed an obstruction-of-justice offense," noting that the government would have to prove such a case "beyond a reasonable doubt." Does this tell us anything new? Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) now says the Senate Judiciary Committee, which he chairs, will explore the "other side" in the Russia probe. His committee will investigate the actions of the Justice Department in the Russia investigation, including the FBI's use of a dossier compiled by British spy Christopher Steele. How can the Democrats say no if Graham wants to open his own investigation? What does this do to the relationship between the US and Russia?
Also, President Donald Trump abruptly reversed decades of US policy Thursday by endorsing permanent Israeli control of the disputed Golan Heights, saying on Twitter that the area seized from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War is "of critical strategic and security importance" to Israel. The position is a political boon to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the two leaders met Monday at the White House, where Trump signed an official proclamation recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a disputed territory the United Nations considers "occupied" by Israel.
Lastly, the city of Pittsburgh is continuing to see demonstrations following a not guilty verdict in the trial of a former police officer charged in the June 2018 death of an unarmed black teen. A jury found Michael Rosfeld not guilty Friday in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Antwon Rose II. Rose was shot three times while running away during a traffic stop last June. Over the weekend, several protests occurred across the area and around the state. More demonstrations are expected this week, including a planned student walkout today at Pittsburgh Public Schools. There was a video showing the deadly encounter. Why was Rosfeld not convicted?
GUESTS:
Dr. Gerald Horne — Professor of history at the University of Houston and author of many books, including "Blows Against the Empire: US Imperialism in Crisis."
Dr. Anthony Monteiro — Author, activist, DuBois Scholar and former professor in the African American Studies Department at Temple University.
Attorney Fred Rabner, Esq. — Attorney in the Antwon Rose II case.
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