From U.S. Marine to Special Counsel by Henry Mantel


“For most of us, fidelity is faithfulness to an obligation, trust, or duty. For the men and women of the FBI, fidelity also means fidelity to country. It means fidelity to justice and the law, fidelity to the Constitution, fidelity to equality and liberty.” - Robert S. Mueller III

In 1968, Robert Swan Mueller III enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp. He joined because a friend of his, a year ahead of him at Princeton University, had died fighting in Vietnam. After training, he was shipped to South Vietnam where he served as a rifle platoon leader. On December 11, Mueller's platoon was ambushed. Under heavy fire, Mueller directed the platoon to set up a defensive perimeter and return counter-fire. Ignoring his own safety, Mueller then supervised the evacuation of injured Marines. Mueller was awarded the Bronze Star with a "V" device for his actions. 

In April, 1969, Mueller was shot in the thigh while leading his platoon to rescue American troops pinned down by enemy fire, for which he was awarded a Purple Heart and a Navy Commendation Medal. Reflecting on his service in Vietnam, Mueller said, "I consider myself exceptionally lucky to have made it out of Vietnam. There were many—many—who did not. And perhaps because I did survive Vietnam, I have always felt compelled to contribute."

After returning to the States, Mueller went to law school and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law. After spending a few years as a civil litigator, Mueller went on to work in multiple United States Attorney offices. As an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts, Mueller investigated and prosecuted major financial fraud, terrorism, and public corruption cases. As Governor Weld said, "He simply knew his stuff. And there was no swagger to him, no strut to this guy at all." 

Mueller became the U.S. Attorney in 1986 and then, in 1990, was tapped to be the United States Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice Criminal Division. As Assistant AG, Mueller oversaw the prosecutions of Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, the Lockerbie bombing case, and Gambino crime family boss John Gotti.

After President H.W. Bush lost reelection in 1992, Mueller became a partner at the Boston firm Hale and Dorr, where he specialized in white-collar crime litigation. Then, in 1995, Mueller took a job in the homicide section in the U.S. Attorney's office in the District of Columbia. When discussing his work there, Mueller said, "I have always loved investigations. I love everything about investigations... I love the forensics. I love the fingerprints and the bullet casings and all the rest that comes along with doing that kind of work." 

In 2001, Mueller was nominated to be the Director of the FBI by President George W. Bush. He was unanimously confirmed, 98-0, by the U.S. Senate. On September 4, Mueller was sworn in. One week later, the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were attacked. Immediately, Mueller shut himself in the FBI's Command Center and spent the next three months organizing the nation's law enforcement efforts. 

The following summer, accusation of mishandling vital intelligence that could have prevented the attacks were leveled against Mueller and the FBI. Politicians came down hard on Mueller. In response, Mueller announced that the FBI would shift its focus to combating terrorism. When asked about this change, Mueller stated, "I think everybody overstates the culture change. The culture doesn't change. The culture of the Bureau is hard work, integrity, sacrifice. That is what you see from just about every agent you have out there."

During his time as FBI Director, Mueller worked with determination and integrity. Mueller spent years directing the task force that prosecuted former Enron executives for fraud. When he discovered that the CIA was performing "enhanced interrogations" on terrorist suspects, he directed FBI agents not to take part in such interrogations. When the Bush administration tried to reauthorize a domestic surveillance program that the Justice Department had determined was illegal, Mueller threatened to resign. When Mueller's ten year term as director ended, President Obama asked Mueller to continue for an extra two years, which the Senate unanimously approved, 100-0. After his time at the FBI, Mueller returned to the private sector, becoming a partner at the law firm WilmerHale, as well as a lecturer at Stanford University. 

On May 9, 2017, President Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, who had been leading an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. In response, on May 17, Acting AG Rod Rosenstein appointed Mueller as Special Counsel, granting him the authority to investigate "any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump and any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation." 

Since his appointment, Mueller has indicted or gotten guilty pleas from 34 people and three companies (that we know about). These include Trump's campaign manager Paul Manafort, Trump campaign foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, former campaign aide Rick Gates, former national security advisor Michael Flynn, Trump's personal attorney and former RNC Deputy Finance Chair Michael Cohen, and professional ratf-cker Roger Stone. 

It is unclear when Mueller's investigation will end or what will happen after; however, it is perfectly clear that Robert Mueller is the right man for the job.

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