Mueller: charging President Trump was not an option

(NBC News) – Special counsel Robert Mueller broke two years of silence Wednesday, saying his written report on Russian election meddling and the Trump campaign “speaks for itself” and he would have nothing further to offer in any appearance before Congress.

In the statement at the Justice Department, Mueller said if his team had clear confidence President Trump did not obstruct justice they would have said so, but they were unable to reach that conclusion.

“If we had confidence that the President clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so. We did not, however, make a determination as to whether the President did commit a crime. The introduction to the volume two of our report explains that decision,” he said.

Regardless, Mueller said he abided by Justice Department rules that prohibit the indictment of any sitting president, saying bluntly “Charging the President with a crime was therefore not an option we could consider.”