DISINFO: The Mueller investigation confirmed there was no collusion between Russia and the Trump administration

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Russia's interference in the 2016 US presidential election. The claim that the Mueller investigation did not find any evidence of collusion between Trump campaign officials and the Russian government is false. Robert Mueller’s investigation sought to establish whether members of the Trump campaign – several of which entertained systematic contacts with individuals connected to the Russian government – conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its 2016 US election interference activities. The investigation established that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome – and that the Trump campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts. Specifically, the investigation concluded that 1) the Russian government interfered in the US election in sweeping and systematic fashion, and 2) there was insufficient evidence to make a prosecutorial decision to charge any member of the Trump campaign with taking part in a criminal conspiracy. However, as Mueller explained during his testimony to the House Intelligence Committee, not making a charging decision does not mean the investigation failed to turn up evidence of conspiracy. During this testimony, Mueller confirmed that his investigation did indeed uncover some evidence of conspiracy between Trump campaign officials and the Russian government, even though it was not seen as sufficient to bring conspiracy charges against any member of the Trump campaign. Ultimately, during the course of the investigation, more than 30 defendants were charged with committing federal crimes, including 12 officers of the Russian military. Seven defendants have been convicted or plead guilty. For a summary of the indictments, see here. Based on Justice Department policy and principles of fairness, the Special Counsel team decided it would not make a decision as to whether the president committed a crime. Read the full Mueller report here. For more disinfo cases about the Mueller investigation, see here.