Share and Follow
In response to the news of former special counsel Robert Mueller’s passing, former President Donald Trump took to Truth Social, expressing his relief. Trump’s post, which read, “Glad he’s dead,” underscores his ongoing animosity toward Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and any ties to Trump’s campaign.
Trump’s exact words were, “Robert Mueller just died. Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!” This statement highlights his enduring resentment toward Mueller’s role in the probe.
Mueller, who passed away on Friday night at the age of 81, was assigned by then-acting Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in May 2017 to lead the investigation into Russian meddling. This appointment followed closely on the heels of Trump’s dismissal of James Comey as the FBI director.
The investigation gained traction in June 2017 when The Washington Post reported that Mueller was examining Trump for potential obstruction of justice. This development came after James Comey’s congressional testimony, where he alleged that Trump pressured him to halt the FBI’s inquiry into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Just a month after these revelations, Trump publicly criticized Mueller in a New York Times interview, accusing his office of having conflicts of interest and cautioning against expanding the investigation beyond Russian interference.
The next several months were characterized by a series of arrests and indictments of figures in Trump’s orbit, including Flynn; his former campaign chair, Paul Manafort; Manafort’s former business partner, Richard Gates; and former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos.
In April 2018, federal investigators raided the apartment, hotel room and office of Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Investigators reportedly sought records related to the 2005 “Access Hollywood” tape that was released shortly before the presidential election and other evidence that had been concealed because it was potentially damaging to Trump.
The investigation continued, and in November of that year, Trump submitted written answers to Mueller about “issues regarding the Russia-related topics of the inquiry,” capping months of back-and-forth over how much the president would cooperate.
Roger Stone, an informal adviser to Trump’s presidential campaign, was indicted in January of 2019, as Mueller’s probe neared its conclusion.
The 22-month investigation culminated in a 448-page report that found the Trump campaign did not conspire or coordinate with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election. Mueller declined, however, to conclude whether Trump had obstructed justice.
“As set forth in our report, after that investigation, if we had confidence that the President clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said that,” Muller said in 2019 when the investigation was finished. “We did not, however, make a determination as to whether the President did commit a crime.”
The investigation became a prime target of Trump’s, with the president regularly lashing out at Mueller and labeling the probe a “witch hunt,” “hoax,” and other pejoratives. He maintained it was politically motivated, a claim he continues to echo nearly seven years later.
In the waning months of his first term, Trump granted clemency to Papadopoulos and Dutch lawyer Alex van der Zwaan. He also pardoned Flynn, a decision former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said at the time “sets right an injustice against an innocent man and an American hero.”
Trump’s cold response to Mueller’s death on Saturday quickly drew strong backlash online.
“Every day, this president shows his basic indecency and unfitness for office,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) wrote on the social platform X.
“The cruelty is the point,” Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote on X. “Trump’s goal is to distract you from rising gas prices, his aimless war, ICE abuses, and the Epstein files. Don’t give him what he wants. And may Robert Mueller, a US Marine and lifelong public servant, rest in peace.”
Trump faced similar condemnation, including from some Republicans, in December when he suggested that director Rob Reiner and his wife, who were stabbed to death in their home, had died from “Trump derangement syndrome.”