Russia probe marked by contrasting styles of Trump and Mueller
The main protagonists of the Russia probe stayed largely out of public view on Monday.  President Trump  surfaced only late in the day for a White House trick-or-treating event  while special counsel Robert S. Mueller III was invisible apart from the signature  he  affixed to the indictment that was unsealed.
 Trump  has often treated the probe as a political assault to be met with counterattacks in both public and private  rather than a legal minefield to be navigated carefully.  He  has fired  his  former FBI director  lashed out frequently on social media  shuffled teams of lawyers and called for the prosecution of Democrats — all part of a highly public but so far unsuccessful attempt to derail the investigation.
[It’s not clear where  Mueller ’s next bombshell will land. And that has Washington on edge.]
Mueller  by contrast  has been silently methodical. He has not uttered a single word in public  works from an undisclosed location in Southwest Washington and demonstrated the same discipline and disdain for theatrics that defined his 12-year tenure as FBI director. Submarine-like in approach  Mueller has remained entirely below the surface except when delivering legal strikes that have included the raid of former  Trump  campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s home and the indictments this week.
“Mueller is the opposite of  Trump   the opposite of a showman  opposite of blustery ” said Jack Goldsmith  who served as a senior Justice Department official in the George W. Bush administration. Mueller “is very quiet  very circumspect  very disciplined ” Goldsmith said. “But he spoke very loudly and very powerfully” through the indictments of Manafort and his longtime business partner Rick Gates as well as the guilty plea of former  Trump  foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos that were disclosed on Monday.
The president’s defenders remain convinced he will be vindicated  and that Mueller’s investigation will fail to find evidence that the  Trump  campaign colluded with Russia as part of a Kremlin interference campaign that  according to a report by U.S. intelligence agencies  sought to discredit the 2016 U.S. election and help propel  Trump  to victory.
“Here we are and it’s November  11 or 12 months into this thing  and still no evidence that  Trump  did anything ” said  Barry Bennett  a former campaign adviser to Trump . “I don’t think  Trump  even sees [Mueller] as an adversary.”
If  Trump  at times seems unconcerned with the extent to which  his  statements and actions complicate  his  legal position   Bennett  said  it is because  he  sees  himself  as innocent and “doesn’t even understand why we’re engaged in this process.”
One of  Trump ’s lawyers  Ty Cobb  said Monday that Mueller’s moves had “not been a cause of great agita or angst or activity at the White House.”
But the statement was belied by  Trump ’s own behavior  according to those close to  him  who said  he  spent much of Monday fuming over media coverage and venting to subordinates.  He  also lashed out in a series of posts on Twitter  saying Tuesday that the “Fake News is working overtime ” and that Papadopoulos — an adviser  Trump  once praised as “an excellent guy” — was “proven to be a liar.”
The Post's Matt Zapotosky and Devlin Barrett explain what could come next following the indictment of former  Trump  campaign chairman Paul Manafort and the guilty plea of former campaign adviser George Papadopoulos. (Joyce Lee Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)
The predictably rapid leak of details about  Trump ’s reaction from inside the White House only highlighted the contrast with Mueller  whose legal team has a lock on the progress of the probe. CNN reported on an indictment Friday night  but there were no reports that it was Manafort and Gates until just hours before it was unsealed. Nothing leaked on the plea and cooperation of Papadopoulos until Mueller chose to disclose it.
Mueller’s refusal to engage publicly sets him apart from other legal and political adversaries that  Trump  has encountered since his entry into politics.  Trump’s  combative impulses are often most effective when  he  can draw opponents into a public skirmish  whether on a crowded debate stage during the Republican primaries or in social media showdowns with members of  his  own party  including most recently Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.)
 Trump  has  at times  sought to pressure key players in the Russia probe.  He  pressed former FBI director James B. Comey for an oath of loyalty before firing him in frustration as the inquiry expanded. More recently   Trump  publicly berated Attorney General Jeff Sessions over  his  decision to recuse  himself  from matters related to the Russia probe  a decision that cleared the way for installing Mueller as special counsel.
Former associates of Mueller said his stealth approach reflects long-standing views of prosecutorial conduct  but also has the strategic advantage of unnerving targets of investigations  a list that may include  Trump .
“The net effect of having these two powerful actions in court [Monday] combined with the mystery that has surrounded the investigation up until today has set everyone in  Trump  world on edge ” said Matthew Miller  who served as Justice Department spokesman during the Obama administration.
The main protagonists of the Russia probe stayed largely out of public view on Monday.  [TGT]surfaced only late in the day for a White House trick-or-treating event  while special counsel Robert S. Mueller III was invisible apart from the signature  [TGT]  affixed to the indictment that was unsealed.
 [TGT]has often treated the probe as a political assault to be met with counterattacks in both public and private  rather than a legal minefield to be navigated carefully.  [TGT]  has fired  [TGT]  former FBI director  lashed out frequently on social media  shuffled teams of lawyers and called for the prosecution of Democrats — all part of a highly public but so far unsuccessful attempt to derail the investigation.
[It’s not clear where  Mueller ’s next bombshell will land. And that has Washington on edge.]
Mueller  by contrast  has been silently methodical. He has not uttered a single word in public  works from an undisclosed location in Southwest Washington and demonstrated the same discipline and disdain for theatrics that defined his 12-year tenure as FBI director. Submarine-like in approach  Mueller has remained entirely below the surface except when delivering legal strikes that have included the raid of former  [TGT]campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s home and the indictments this week.
“Mueller is the opposite of  Trump   the opposite of a showman  opposite of blustery ” said Jack Goldsmith  who served as a senior Justice Department official in the George W. Bush administration. Mueller “is very quiet  very circumspect  very disciplined ” Goldsmith said. “But he spoke very loudly and very powerfully” through the indictments of Manafort and his longtime business partner Rick Gates as well as the guilty plea of former  [TGT]foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos that were disclosed on Monday.
The president’s defenders remain convinced he will be vindicated  and that Mueller’s investigation will fail to find evidence that the  [TGT]campaign colluded with Russia as part of a Kremlin interference campaign that  according to a report by U.S. intelligence agencies  sought to discredit the 2016 U.S. election and help propel  Trump  to victory.
“Here we are and it’s November  11 or 12 months into this thing  and still no evidence that  [TGT]did anything ” said  [TGT] . “I don’t think  [TGT]even sees [Mueller] as an adversary.”
If  [TGT]at times seems unconcerned with the extent to which  [TGT]  statements and actions complicate  [TGT]  legal position   [TGT]said  it is because  [TGT]  sees  [TGT]  as innocent and “doesn’t even understand why we’re engaged in this process.”
One of  [TGT] ’s lawyers  Ty Cobb  said Monday that Mueller’s moves had “not been a cause of great agita or angst or activity at the White House.”
But the statement was belied by  [TGT] ’s own behavior  according to those close to  him  who said  he  spent much of Monday fuming over media coverage and venting to subordinates.  He  also lashed out in a series of posts on Twitter  saying Tuesday that the “Fake News is working overtime ” and that Papadopoulos — an adviser  [TGT]  once praised as “an excellent guy” — was “proven to be a liar.”
The Post's Matt Zapotosky and Devlin Barrett explain what could come next following the indictment of former  [TGT]  campaign chairman Paul Manafort and the guilty plea of former campaign adviser George Papadopoulos. (Joyce Lee Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)
The predictably rapid leak of details about  [TGT] ’s reaction from inside the White House only highlighted the contrast with Mueller  whose legal team has a lock on the progress of the probe. CNN reported on an indictment Friday night  but there were no reports that it was Manafort and Gates until just hours before it was unsealed. Nothing leaked on the plea and cooperation of Papadopoulos until Mueller chose to disclose it.
Mueller’s refusal to engage publicly sets him apart from other legal and political adversaries that  [TGT]has encountered since his entry into politics.  Trump’s  combative impulses are often most effective when  he  can draw opponents into a public skirmish  whether on a crowded debate stage during the Republican primaries or in social media showdowns with members of  his  own party  including most recently Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.)
 [TGT]has  at times  sought to pressure key players in the Russia probe.  [TGT]  pressed former FBI director James B. Comey for an oath of loyalty before firing him in frustration as the inquiry expanded. More recently   [TGT]  publicly berated Attorney General Jeff Sessions over  [TGT]  decision to recuse  [TGT]  from matters related to the Russia probe  a decision that cleared the way for installing Mueller as special counsel.
Former associates of Mueller said his stealth approach reflects long-standing views of prosecutorial conduct  but also has the strategic advantage of unnerving targets of investigations  a list that may include  Trump .
“The net effect of having these two powerful actions in court [Monday] combined with the mystery that has surrounded the investigation up until today has set everyone in  [TGT]  world on edge ” said Matthew Miller  who served as Justice Department spokesman during the Obama administration.