Russia probe: Trump's tweets could be evidence against him, legal experts say

Erin Kelly | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Timeline: Trump campaign contacts with Russia A timeline of events: President Donald Trump's campaign and his family had several contacts with intermediaries for the Russian government during the 2016 presidential campaign and the presidential transition. (Nov. 14)

WASHINGTON — President Trump's Twitter habit may become a legal liability for him, as his latest tweets about the Russia investigation could help build a potential case against him for obstruction of justice or witness intimidation, legal experts say.

After news broke last month that George Papadopoulos, a former foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, revealed that he is cooperating with special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, Trump tweeted that Papadopoulos is "a liar."

Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about his contacts during the campaign with a professor he believed "had substantial connections to Russian government officials," according to court documents unsealed by Mueller. The professor offered Papadopoulos thousands of emails containing "dirt" on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The Fake News is working overtime. As Paul Manaforts lawyer said, there was "no collusion" and events mentioned took place long before he... — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 31, 2017

....came to the campaign. Few people knew the young, low level volunteer named George, who has already proven to be a liar. Check the DEMS! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 31, 2017

Trump's tweets about indictments in the Russia probe "could be used to further support a case against him for obstruction of justice," said Barry Berke, a partner at the New York law firm of Kramer Levin Naftalis and Frankel.

Trump also tweeted that Mueller's indictment of his former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, had nothing to do with his campaign and that Mueller should be going after Democrats instead. Mueller indicted Manafort and his associate Rick Gates on charges that they secretly worked on behalf of pro-Russian factions in Ukraine, laundered millions of dollars in profits through foreign bank accounts, and sought to cover up their work while they held senior roles in Trump’s campaign.

"To the extent the president’s tweets regarding the indictment of Manafort and Gates or the cooperation of Papadopoulos are knowingly false and intended to mislead investigators, influence the testimony of others or cover up what actually occurred, that could support an obstruction of justice case," Berke said.

Attorney John Dowd, one of several attorneys representing President Trump, responded via email with the single word: "Nonsense!"

Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren't Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus????? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 30, 2017

A single tweet or tweet storm is unlikely to be enough for a prosecutor to charge someone with obstruction of justice, said Noah Bookbinder, the executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the former chief counsel for criminal justice for the Senate Judiciary Committee.

"You're not likely to get a charge because he (Trump) called somebody a liar in one instance," Bookbinder said. "But the tweets form a pattern of conduct with the other actions he's engaged in where it starts to look like he is trying to undermine this investigation in many different ways and potentially trying to pressure those who are running the investigation or cooperating with the investigation."

In addition to probing Russian meddling in last year's election, Mueller also is investigating Trump for possible obstruction of justice, according to news reports.

Bookbinder said the president's tweets about Papadopoulos could be construed by Mueller as the continuation of a pattern of obstruction that also includes allegedly pressing former FBI director James Comey to stop his investigation of Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, and then firing Comey when he wouldn't back off.

"To say the least, it is very unusual for the president of the United States to attack a witness who is cooperating with the United States in an ongoing federal investigation," Norman Eisen, chief White House ethics lawyer for former president Barack Obama and a senior fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution, wrote in a recent op-ed in USA TODAY. "Think about it: When you are a witness in a case that threatens the most powerful man in the world, and he attacks you publicly, that is scary."

Trump's fondness for tweeting also could come back to haunt him if he tries to replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein with someone who will fire Mueller, said Jens David Ohlin, vice dean and professor of law at Cornell Law School.

Trump has attacked Sessions on Twitter for recusing himself from the investigation, which the president has referred to as a "witch hunt" and "a hoax." Sessions stepped aside from the probe amid criticism that he failed to tell the Senate Judiciary Committee that he met twice with the Russian ambassador while he was serving as an adviser to Trump's campaign. That left Rosenstein in charge of Mueller. Rosenstein has said publicly that he has no plans to fire Mueller.

"If the president fired Sessions or Rosenstein, all of those tweets about Mueller and the Russia investigation would become very relevant to an obstruction of justice claim," Ohlin said. "If he tried to say that firing Mueller or shutting down the investigation was the idea of the new attorney, his tweets railing against the investigation would belie that explanation."

Not only could prosecutors use the tweets against Trump in an obstruction case, but Congress could use them in impeachment proceedings against the president if Mueller was fired, the professor said.

Behind the scenes, Trump's attorneys are undoubtedly advising him to stop tweeting about the Russia investigation, Ohlin said.

"The president's Twitter account stands at the intersection of law and politics," he said. "From a legal standpoint, it's a disaster. But from a political standpoint, the president has used it quite effectively. The calculations the president makes are that, even if there are some legal risks, he's unwilling to give up such a powerful political weapon."

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