To the Editor:

Rober t Mueller, the special counsel in the Russia investigation, testified for hours before two congressional committees on Wednesday (nytimes.com, July 24). As Bill Clinton famously said in a very different context, I want to say to Mr. Mueller, “Bob, I feel your pain.”

In the morning hearing, the Republicans’ rapid-fire barrage of questions, often referring to a specific sentence of the special counsel’s report, seemed to keep Mr. Mueller off balance and struggling to keep up.

Although Mr. Mueller made crystal clear what he would talk about and what he would not, the Republicans kept badgering him to respond, knowing that he would not. Their goal was to make him look as if he were vacillating, obfuscating and confused. At least among Republicans, they may have well succeeded.

The Democrats had some success making their case that President Trump was “guilty” of obstructing justice. They also tried to make abundantly clear that if it had not been for the Justice Department policy that no sitting president can be indicted, Mr. Mueller would have indicted Mr. Trump.