Showing why he’s no longer an active judge, 68-year-old Judge Andrew Napolitano continues to slam 72-year-old President Donald Trump, frequently appearing as a legal expert with Fox News anti-Trump daytime anchor Shepard Smith. While Fox News keeps Shep on to show it’s “fair-and-balanced,” using Napolitano to go after Trump has gone over-the-top. Since Special Counsel Robert Mueller released his final report March 22, Napolitano has relentlessly gone after Trump for the very things Mueller’s report essentially clears Trump. When Atty. Gen. William Barr released the full redacted report April 18, Napalolitano went wild, accusing Trump of obstruction of justice. Mueller’s report cleared Trump of Russian collusion and did not charge him with obstruction of justice. “Mueller laid out at least a half-dozen crimes of obstruction by Trump, Napolitano wrote on Fox News.
Napolitano, like Trump’s Democrat detractors in the press and on Capitol Hill, have made up their own eccentric definitions of obstruction, something the Special Counsel looked into for nearly two years. Napolitano has not seen the facts-in-evidence but, based on the redacted version of the Mueller report, convicts Trump of obstruction. Showing why Napolitano’s off the bench, his propensity to make up criminal standards like obstruction of justice is astonishing. Napolitano’s anti-Trump analysis is often reported in the liberal press, using the Fox New analyst to attack Trump’s credibility. “Why not charge him? Napolitano asked in a video. “Because the Attorney General of the United States would’ve blocked such a charge,” Napolitano said. Mueller and 23 experienced federal prosecutors didn’t charge Trump because there was insufficient evidence for obstruction.
Trump may have expressed frustration with his various staff, even expressing a desire to fire Mueller, former Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions, Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein or White House Counsel Don McGahan, but he didn’t do it, whether they all ignored his ranting or not. Napolitano knows that obstruction of justice involves an attempt to cover up an underlying crime. Since Mueller cleared Trump of Russian collusion, conspiracy or coordination, there was no basis to cover up anything for Trump. When it came to releasing the full unredacted Mueller Report, Trump did not assert executive privilege, something he could have done under his Article 2 powers. Yet Trump-haters like Napolitano think they can just make up the facts, getting other Trump-haters to publish his words, no matter how over the top. Napolitano insists that Barr was wrong not to charge Trump.
Napolitano thinks he knows best without knowing the facts underlying the Special Counsel and Attorney General’s decision not to charge Trump with Russian conspiracy and obstruction of justice. If Napolitano wants to understand obstruction of justice, he need look no further than former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Hillary was accused illegally passing classified data through her private email server. When she physically destroyed 12 cell phones and paid computer security experts to acid-bleach her hard drive destroying some 33,000 emails, that’s today’s definition of obstruction of justice. Trump expressed frustration over the Mueller probe with his staff but he didn’t physically destroy evidence or data. Mueller’s team, together with Rosenstein at the DOJ, looked exhaustively at all the evidence and decided not to charge Trump with collusion or obstruction.
Napolitano’s remarks echo those of House Democrats that have also rejected the Mueller Report. House Democrats can’t have it both ways: Promising to accept Muller’s findings, then, once they’re not to their liking, reinvent the facts to fit their political ambitions. Napolitano’s a strange case of a would-be Republican who despises Trump, looking for anyway possible to hurt Trump politically. Napolitano can’t see how he’s exploited by the liberal press, just like other Republicans looking to slam Trump, like the late Sen. John McCain (R-Az.). Until his death from brain cancer Aug. 25, 2018, McCain had nothing good to say about Trump. It was McCain who turned over Hillary’s paid opposition research AKA “the dossier,” to former FBI Director James Comey who proceeded to wiretap Trump and his campaign. Napolitanto continues the “never Trump” tradition led by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fl.).
Napolitano said, “I’m disappointed in the behavior of the president,” not saying a word how former President Barack Obama’s FBI and DOJ illegally wiretapped Trump’s campaign to help Hillary win the 2016 election. Napolitano should look no further than himself about his personal disappointment. “His job is to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States to uphold and enforce federal law. Not to violate it. Napolitano likes to blame Trump but ignore the FBI and DOJ who illegally used the nation’s national security apparatus to wiretap Trump’s campaign to give Hillary an unfair advantage. Napolitano can’t make up facts or his own definition of obstruction of justice simply because he despises Trump. Napolitano’s in no position to ignore the Mueller Report and charge Trump with his own definition of obstruction, no matter how he sounds in the anti-Trump press.
