In a Daily Beast op-ed, Professor Jed Shugerman shares where he feels the Mueller report “failed to get the law, the facts, or even the basics of writing right.”
The DOJ’s initial appointment explicitly tasked Mueller with investigating campaign “coordination,” and it is not too much to ask that he get the law of “coordination” right. The report stated that “‘coordination’ does not have a settled definition in federal criminal law. We understood coordination to require an agreement—tacit or express.”
However, Congress purposely sought to prevent such narrow interpretations: in 2002, it passed a statute directing that campaign finance regulations “shall not require agreement or formal collaboration to establish coordination.” The Federal Election Commission established the regulations for the implementation of the statute: “Coordinated means made in cooperation, consultation or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate,” with no need to show any kind of agreement.
See additional media coverage on this topic:
Mueller made key errors that are letting Trump get away with Russia collusion: law professor
Robert Mueller’s Mistakes Let Donald Trump Get Away With Russia Collusion, Law Professor Spells Out Errors