'Act II now begins': Former mob prosecutor says Trump must be impeached based on Mueller's findings

On Wednesday, Ronald Goldfarb, an organized crime prosecutor under Robert F. Kennedy's Department of Justice, wrote in the Daily Beast how damning former special counsel Robert Mueller's findings are — and how important it now is to impeach President Donald Trump over it.

On the issue of conspiracy with Russia, Goldfarb argued that a case he tried in the 1960s offers instructive precedent. The case involved casino operators who conspired with police officers to kidnap a local football star running for office on an anti-corruption platform.

As part of the case, a corrupt casino operator and a lawyer were convicted of depriving civil rights under color of law, but the police officers were not convicted. The defendants then appealed the case, arguing that since the officers were not convicted, there was no "under color of law" for them to have used — and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected that argument, saying that they participated in a conspiracy even if they could not have committed the underlying offense.

"A Politico survey of law professors offered a list of crimes that might result from facts already made public about Russia's involvement in the 2016 election. They include violations of election and campaign financing laws, foreign intelligence activities or cybersecurity prevention laws, wire fraud, misprision of a felony, false filings and false statements to government officials, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and perjury," wrote Goldfarb. As for whether this precedent could apply to Trump, he added, "The Mueller Report did not exclude that possibility."

As for obstruction of justice, Goldfarb said, "Mueller offered a slam dunk."

"Didn't Trump attempt to obstruct justice in his dealings with James Comey, Jeff Sessions, Rod Rosenstein, national security and White House officials?" said Goldfarb. "When they didn't do as he asked, he raged about it, repeatedly. If all we know about the Russian criminal hacking wasn't aided and abetted by Trump’s family and aides – among about 1000 other experienced former prosecutors, I would have thought so — for sure the evidence we do know demonstrates that if Trump didn't actually 'collude,' to use his word, or  obstruct, he tried to."

All of this, Goldfarb concluded, means that Trump needs to be impeached.

"As Act I of this historic and consequential drama is now concluded, Speaker Pelosi has the nod to proceed with impeachment hearings," said Goldfarb. "As we all stay tuned for Act II, one thing is clear: President Trump is a lucky man. Comey's improper, excessive, politically loaded statements got Trump elected; and Special Counsel Mueller's honorable, careful, rigorously apolitical position about his assignment, saved Trump from prosecution, at least for now. Comey said too much. Mueller said as little as possible, but what he did say between his lines Wednesday said much. Act II now begins."