2016 ELECTION/ROBERT MUELLER/RUDY GIULIANI/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump on Tuesday [7-31-18] embraced a line of defense offered by his attorney, Rudy Giuliani, that ‘collusion is not a crime,’ even though he continued to deny any alleged ties between his campaign and Moscow during the 2016 election…For months, Trump has insisted that there was ‘no collusion,’ but his Tuesday morning tweet hints at a potential expansion of his defense amid the ongoing special counsel investigation. Speaking to CNN’s ‘New Day’ on Monday [7-30-18], Giuliani said he wasn’t sure if collusion was a crime…Legal experts, however, have repeatedly said that anyone found collaborating with Russia on the 2016 election could be charged with other crimes, such as conspiracy, and special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation has not concluded…Over the weekend, Trump and Giuliani launched some of their most personal attacks to date against Mueller, claiming the special counsel personally has conflicts of interest — including an unnamed ‘contentious business relationship’ — that should preclude him from running the investigation. Trump also accused Mueller of bringing on too many Democratic investigators, and the President made a false claim about the origin of the Russia investigation.”
–Maegan Vazquez, “Trump repeats Giuliani defense: ‘Collusion is not a crime’,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, July 31, 2018