After The Mueller Report, AOC Joins Rashida Tlaib's Impeachment Resolution

The Mueller report turned out to be much more damning for President Donald Trump than the four-page summary released by Attorney General William Barr disclosed, which now opens the door for House Democrats to investigate whether the president obstructed justice and consider impeachment.

Not that the Democratic leadership is considering going down that road. Even before the public release of the (partially redacted) report, impeachment was a political minefield. But freshman members of Congress such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez say that in its aftermath it's imperative for Congress to find out whether Trump tried to obstruct justice.

"Mueller’s report is clear in pointing to Congress’ responsibility in investigating obstruction of justice by the President," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted Thursday. "It is our job as outlined in Article 1, Sec 2, Clause 5 of the US Constitution. As such, I’ll be signing onto @RashidaTlaib’s impeachment resolution."

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan progressive and one of Ocasio-Cortez's closest allies, introduced a resolution last month calling for the House Judiciary Committee to investigate Trump committed impeachable offenses. She emphasized the need for a congressional inquiry after the release of the report. Her colleague Rep. Ilhan Omar also signed on to the resolution on Thursday.

Ocasio-Cortez that while she didn't campaign on the possibility of impeachment and would prefer to work on her policy priorities, such as her Green New Deal resolution and a Medicare for All proposal, Mueller's report puts the issue "on our doorstep." She added: "While I understand the political reality of the Senate + election considerations, upon reading this DoJ report, which explicitly names Congress in determining obstruction, I cannot see a reason for us to abdicate from our constitutionally mandated responsibility to investigate."

In his report, Special Counsel Robert Mueller outlined how the president tried to block the investigation into whether his presidential campaign was aided by the Russian government in the 2016 election. But Mueller let the decision of bringing obstruction of justice charges to Congress. He wrote: "With respect to whether the President can be found to have obstructed justice by exercising his powers under Article II of the Constitution, we concluded that Congress has the authority to prohibit a President’s corrupt use of his authority in order to protect the integrity of the administration of justice."

Tlaib's resolution and the issue of impeachment is unlikely to gain traction with the Democratic leadership, who are more interested in defeating Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Instead, they are attempting to hear directly from Mueller. “As we continue to review the report,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a joint statement, “one thing is clear: Attorney General Barr presented a conclusion that the president did not obstruct justice while Mueller’s report appears to undercut that finding.”