Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

1 Year In, Trump Claims the Mueller Probe Is a 'Witch Hunt,' But CNN Has the Receipts

1 Year In, Trump Claims the Mueller Probe Is a 'Witch Hunt,' But CNN Has the Receipts
(Photos by Win McNamee and Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Facts are stubborn things.

Last year, the United States Justice Department, headed by Attorney General Jeff Sessions decided to conduct a more thorough investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and any ties to the campaign of President Donald Trump. This move came after investigations led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and in the House and Senate and the high profile firing of the FBI director, James Comey, by the president.

Trump administration member AG Sessions recused himself from the investigation, turning it over to another Trump appointee, Rod Rosenstein. Rosenstein decided to appoint former FBI director Robert Mueller as Special Counsel exactly one year ago today. All three men are lifelong Republicans.


Trump mocked and  ridiculed the investigation from the beginning and continues to do so, referring to it as a "witch hunt" or a "hoax" perpetrated by Democrats. The president marked the anniversary of Mueller's appointment with another series of mocking tweets.

The president made the same claim—greatest witch hunt in American history—one day after the special counsel appointment occurred.

But is it really a witch hunt or a hoax? Has the investigation bore no fruit? CNN doesn't think so and they've been kind enough to break it down, by the numbers, for us all.

19 is the number of individuals with charges brought against them because of the investigation. 3 companies also were subject to charges.

Among those charged? 1 White House adviser, 3 Trump campaign aides, 1 prominent Russian oligarch, and 12 internet trolls with ties to Putin's Kremlin.

75 is the number of criminal charges they face. Charges encompass bank fraud and tax violations, lying to FBI investigators, identity fraud and conspiracy against the United States.

5 defendants plead guilty. They include Trump campaign aide Rick Gates and former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Both chose to cooperate with Mueller's investigation.

1 person who plead guilty, Alex van der Zwaan, guilty of lying to the special counsel, is already serving a prison sentence for the crime.

1 person, Paul Manafort, chose to fight the Justice Department's charges in court. Manafort was chairman of the Trump 2016 presidential campaign.

Meanwhile, at least 40 people voluntarily spoke to the Office of the Special Counsel and at least 7 went before a grand jury.

Despite the mounting numbers of charges and indictments, the first occurring 5 months into the probe, Trump has used the phrase "witch hunt" to refer to the Russia investigation 39 times. Twitter users provided some feedback for him about that claim.

More from People/donald-trump

Donald Trump; JD Vance and Tim Walz
Fox News; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Trump Just Epically Threw JD Vance Under The Bus While Trying To Insult Tim Walz—And Yikes!

MAGA Republican President Donald Trump seemingly revealed his true feelings about his Heritage Foundation-chosen Vice President JD Vance during a recent rambling attempt to slam Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz. Vance was in the room at the time that the POTUS called him "incompetent."

Handed a setup by a Trump administration-friendly member of the White House press corps about an investigation into the fraudulent use of COVID relief funds in Minnesota—which Pam Bondi's Department of Justice has been focusing on while ignoring similar crimes in red states, Trump began by ranting about Somali immigrants, again, before attacking Governor Walz, again.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Megyn Kelly and her guest
The Megyn Kelly Show

Megyn Kelly Slammed After Sharing Her Sadistic Desire To See People On Suspected Drug Boats 'Suffer'

Right-wing talk show host Megyn Kelly was criticized after she revealed she not only supports the Department of Defense's attacks on alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean but wants anyone aboard these boats to "suffer," even saying that she hopes they "lose a limb and bleed out" slowly.

Kelly spoke after a Washington Post investigation published last week alleging that in September Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed a U.S. strike unit to eliminate everyone aboard a single vessel. According to the report, after two people were later spotted alive in the wreckage, commanders authorized a follow-up “double tap” strike to ensure their deaths.

Keep ReadingShow less
Serena Williams
Michael Buckner/Variety/Getty Images

Serena Williams Responds To Rumors That She's Returning To Tennis After Telling Report Surfaces

For a lot of people, 2025 has been a tough year for a variety of reasons, and we could all use something to look forward to.

So when tennis legend Serena Williams officially re-entered the International Tennis Integrity Agency's (ITIA) registered testing pool—from which players are randomly selected to be tested for doping—fans were quick to dream that she might be planning a return to the court.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Marco Rubio and a sleeping Donald Trump
@DemocratWins/X

Trump Just Appeared To Fall Asleep During His Own Cabinet Meeting—And The Mockery Was Swift

President Donald Trump was widely mocked after he appeared to doze off during his own Cabinet meeting as members of the Cabinet openly praised him on Tuesday.

At one point, Trump closed his eyes for several seconds as Secretary of State Marco Rubio described him as "the only leader in the world who can help end" wars and "the million things going on in the world that we have to focus on as a country."

Keep ReadingShow less