Mueller May Be Willing to Talk About Election Security—If Democrats Can Avoid Focusing on Trump

While former Special Counsel Robert Mueller has made it clear he does not intend to go beyond what is laid out in his report when he testifies before the House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday afternoon, he indicated one possible exception in May. The threat to U.S. election security "deserves the attention of every American," Mueller warned in his rare public remarks on May 29, the closest he got to giving an opinion on the content of his report. He again reiterated those words in front of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday morning. "Over the course of my career, I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy," Mueller told lawmakers. "The Russian government's effort to interfere in our election is among the most serious…. " If it was prioritized, Mueller could give significant weight to election security efforts that have floundered in Congress. Several Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee have indicated that they hope he will use the high-profile hearings to talk about these ongoing threats…. The hearings come as Congress remains deadlocked on legislation to counter the next attack on U.S. election infrastructure, three years after the Russian operation first came to light. Democrats are accusing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of refusing to allow the Senate to vote on bipartisan election security proposals. "Tomorrow, we're going to hear again directly from Bob Mueller about what these attacks on our democracy were and hopefully it will spike people's interest in making sure that we can reinforce our election security," Rep. John Sarbanes, a Maryland Democrat, said on Tuesday. "Hopefully it will get Mitch McConnell interested in this fundamental enterprise to make sure that Americans' democracy is secure and protected."