and the attorney general himself to make that determination. mueller did not make a recommendation about obstruction of justice. barr in consultation with his deputy attorney general, rod rosen ti rosenstein concluded based on the evidence presented to him from mueller -- and he did it fast. he only got the evidence on friday. a two-year investigation, and he concluded today that there was no basis to pursue an obstruction of justice charge against the president. and it's very important that in mueller's letter, and what is certain to be a frequently quoted passage from mueller's report that was quoted by barr, he said while the report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him. certainly congress is going to want to see the underlying basis for that conclusion and that is