WEBVTT - Bloomberg Law Brief: Mueller Mulls Obstruction Charges (Audio)

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<v Speaker 1>And now it's time for our daily Bloomberg lawb Brief,

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<v Speaker 1>exploring legal issues in the news, brought to you by

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<v Speaker 1>American Arbitration Association, International Trade or Business Dispute Result Faster

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<v Speaker 1>with the International Center for Dispute Resolution, the leader in

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<v Speaker 1>alternative dispute resolution around the world i c d R

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<v Speaker 1>dot org. Today, Bloomberg Lahos student Grosso discusses Special Investigator

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<v Speaker 1>Robert Mueller exploring obstruction of justice charges against President Trump

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<v Speaker 1>for interfering in the Russia investigation. She speaks with Fred tc,

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<v Speaker 1>a partner at Ice Miller. Fred, after everything we've heard

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<v Speaker 1>from James Coley and from the President himself in tweets

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<v Speaker 1>and interviews, does this obstruction of justice investigation come as

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<v Speaker 1>a surprise. No, under the current political climate, it doesn't

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<v Speaker 1>come as a surprise in any way, shape or form. So,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the question is whether or not it's a

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<v Speaker 1>legitimate criminal investigation of a of a of a serious crime,

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<v Speaker 1>and that that's a different issue. Well, how would you

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<v Speaker 1>determine that until he actually goes through with his investigation. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, let's assume for a minute that the conversation

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<v Speaker 1>is what the conversation is, that's the obstruction, right, it

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<v Speaker 1>was what was what President Trump said to Comy or

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<v Speaker 1>or as as I understand now, they've expanded it to

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<v Speaker 1>include the firing of Comey. The question is whether or

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<v Speaker 1>not that was an attempt to corruptly and influence an investigation.

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<v Speaker 1>And the irony of all this, which is when people

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<v Speaker 1>kind of put down the politics, certain people have the

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<v Speaker 1>right in government to make decisions about whether or not

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<v Speaker 1>investigations should go forward. Look, look what happened last fall

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<v Speaker 1>and which led to the bipartisan call for Comy's firing

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<v Speaker 1>because he made a determination that Loretta Lynch either implicitly

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<v Speaker 1>or explicitly decided not to move forward with an investigation. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>that's no. That is her unfettered right as the attorney general,

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<v Speaker 1>whether she's right or she's wrong to make that decision.

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<v Speaker 1>That's not obstruction to just so the president could have

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<v Speaker 1>stopped the investigation. Isn't it something different if you try

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<v Speaker 1>to get someone else through some kind of coercion to

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<v Speaker 1>try to stop the investigation. Well, that's a great question.

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<v Speaker 1>Does the president if the president has the authority to

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<v Speaker 1>stop an investigation, and you see, here's the wrinkle that

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<v Speaker 1>you throw it under coercion. Okay, there's no need to

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<v Speaker 1>engage in coercion if you have the authority to do something.

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<v Speaker 1>So does the president have If the president has the

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<v Speaker 1>right to stop an investigation, does does he have the

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<v Speaker 1>ability to delegate that right to someone else to stop

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<v Speaker 1>the investigation. That's that's a different question. And that is

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<v Speaker 1>Fred tc, a partner at Ice Miller, speaking to Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>Law host in Gross So you can listen to Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>Law Weekday is at one pm Wall Street Time here

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<v Speaker 1>on Bloomberg Radio Now. Among the top legal stories from

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Law, the Justice Department is investigating a unit of

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<v Speaker 1>Booze Allen over how he built the government for consulting work.

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<v Speaker 1>The company says it's cooperating that its own prov has

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<v Speaker 1>not shown any significant deficiencies. Booz Allen gout nineties seven

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<v Speaker 1>percent of its revenue from US government contracts in the

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<v Speaker 1>last fiscal year. The company shares fell almost fourteen percent

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<v Speaker 1>in after hours trading. And that is this morning's Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>Law Brief. You can find more legal issues in the

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<v Speaker 1>news at Bloomberg Law dot com and Bloomberg Bna dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Attorneys will find exceptional legal research and business development tools

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<v Speaker 1>there as well. Visit Bloomberg law dot com and Bloomberg

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