SHEPARD SMITH (HOST): Last year, The New York Times reported President Trump tried to get Mueller fired over what the president claims are conflicts of interest. One of them was the dispute over fees at the president's golf club in Virginia outside DC. A special counsel spokesperson said Mueller left without dispute. As for the president turning down Mueller to be the FBI director, the day before the Justice Department appointed him to run the special counsel's Russia investigation, Justice Department officials say ethics experts determined the appointment was, indeed, appropriate.
...
President Trump has repeatedly said there was no obstruction, there was no collusion. And this morning his lawyer said collusion is not a crime.
[BEGIN VIDEO]
RUDY GIULIANI (PRESIDENT TRUMP'S LAWYER): I'm sitting here looking at the federal code trying to find collusion as a crime.
Collusion is not a crime.
I don't even know if that's a crime, colluding about Russians.
[END VIDEO]
SMITH: Guliani is essentially making a straw man argument and it is deceptive. While the U.S. criminal code does not criminalize colluding, per se, it is a crime to conspire with a foreign adversary to influence or undermine our election or any other government action. Special counsel prosecutors have gotten indictments against more than 20 Russians, three Russian companies, and several former Trump campaign members, including guilty pleas from a foreign policy adviser and a national security adviser. Both of those pled guilty. Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort pleaded not guilty. He's set to go on trial tomorrow.
