Excerpts from Robert Mueller testimony on Russia probe

Excerpts from testimony by former special counsel Robert Mueller about his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election:

"First, our investigation found that the Russian government interfered in our election in sweeping and systematic fashion. Second, the investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired with the Russian government in its election interference activities ... we focused on whether the evidence was sufficient to charge any member of the campaign with taking part in a criminal conspiracy, and there was not.

Finally, we investigated a series of actions by the president towards the investigation … We decided we would not make a decision as to whether the president committed a crime. That was our decision then and it remains our decision today.

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Over the course of my career, I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy. The Russian government’s effort to interfere in our election is among the most serious. And as I said on May 29, this deserves the attention of every American.

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Mueller said "at the outset" of the special counsel's probe, investigators " ... determined that we -- when it came to the president’s culpability, we needed to go forward only after taking into account the [Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel] opinion that indicated that a president -- [a] sitting president cannot be indicted.

SEE PHOTOS6 key excerpts from the Mueller report

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan):

So the report did not conclude that he did not commit obstruction of justice, is that correct?

MUELLER: That is correct.

NADLER: And what about total exoneration? Did you actually totally exonerate the President?

MUELLER: No.

The Washington Post