Wednesday, during his testimony in front of the House Judiciary Committee, Robert Mueller made major headlines following this interaction with Rep. Ken Buck, a Colorado Republican:

Buck: "Could you charge the president with a crime after he left office?"

Mueller: "Yes"

Buck: "You believe that he committed -- you could charge the president of the United States with obstruction of justice after he left office?"

Mueller: "Yes"

Mueller has been clear and consistent about two things since releasing his report.

First, his investigation did not exonerate President Trump, despite his claims.

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Second, he never considered prosecuting the president because of the Justice Department’s controversial policy stating a sitting president cannot be indicted. But, as Mueller testified on Wednesday, Trump could very well be prosecuted once he leaves office.

There’s no doubt that is something Trump and his legal advisers have had in mind all this time.

The longer Trump is in office, the better his chances are of staying out of prison, and if he is reelected, he could very well go untouched.

The statute of limitations for federal obstruction of justice is five years from the time the crime was committed. If President Trump is re-elected in 2020, his second term would conclude well after the statute of limitations has run out. If he loses, however, he could be in a world of hurt.

So, while every president is motivated to win reelection, for Trump the stakes are higher. Maybe that’s why he is working so hard, raising more than $100 million and peddling $15 straws with his name on them. Trump knows what he did and knows he can only be held accountable if he loses next year.

Imagine for a moment if this president was a Democrat, Republicans would be the first to call for investigations.

While he tells us America’s future is on the line, maybe what he’s really worried about is his own freedom – and he’s doing everything he can to salvage it.

For Trump, it has always been about looking out for Number One. He’s ramping up his message of fear and hatred, telling members of congress, whom the people elected, to go back to where they came from (three out of four of them were born in America) and attacking law enforcement including Mueller and the FBI, intelligence officials and judges, the very people sworn to protect our citizenry and our democracy.

He’s behaving this way because he knows fear and division drive his base, and he needs them more than ever because he has lost moderate Democrats and the majority of independent voters.

While any potential remaining legal action will have to wait, Congress must not. As Mueller said in the press conference he held in May, it is Congress’ job to investigate and take action, if necessary, against a sitting president.

So, as much as Republican hacks will continue to whine, kick, and scream, Congress must continue to investigate Trump’s actions during the 2016 campaign.

Imagine for a moment if this president was a Democrat, Republicans would be the first to call for investigations.

Opening an impeachment inquiry is the best way for the American people to get the facts they need to decide for themselves whether to remove the president from office (we know the Republican Senate will not) in 2020.

Frankly, the president and his allies in Congress should welcome any effort that could potentially clear his name. But they oppose it because they know they facts, and those facts are not in the president’s favor.

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I believe in the American people and, unlike our president, I believe in the American system of justice.

The 2020 election will not only determine the future of our nation and whether we want four more years of a failing reality show, the outcome and the actions that follow will answer the question burning in the minds of many Americans: Is the president of the United States above the law?

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