Much has been made of Robert Mueller’s decision — as reported by the Barr memo — not to make a decision in connection with whether or not the Trump administration committed obstruction of justice. Astonishingly, I have yet to hear on television, or read on the Washington Post or New York Times opinion pages, the explanation that occurred to me immediately: Most of the obstruction (but certainly not all) was directed at Mueller himself, and it would be unethical for him to pass judgment on a matter in which he is a party.
Unless there is some ethical rule guiding Special Counsels that I just don’t know about, it seems clear to me that he had no choice but to pass those instances of obstructive behavior to others. And, after eating horseshit for two years, I’d love to know what Mueller thinks of Barr’s and Rosenstein’s (the author of the memo used to dismiss Comey) summary declaration that Trump did not obstruct justice.