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PAUL: WELCOME TO THE SPECIAL

EDITION OF "THE JOURNAL

EDITORIAL REPORT."

AS WE LOOK BACK ON THE HIGHS AND

LOWS OF 2019.

I'M PAUL GIGOT.

FROM THE MUELLER REPORT TO THE

IMPEACHMENT PROBE, WE BEGIN WITH

THE INVESTIGATIONS INTO

PRESIDENT TRUMP WHICH KICKED

INTO HIGH GEAR THIS YEAR AS

DEMOCRATS TOOK CONTROL OF THE

HOUSE.

SO WHAT DID WE LEARN ABOUT THE

PRESIDENT AND THOSE

INVESTIGATING HIM AND WHICH SIDE

EMERGED STRONGER?

LET'S ASK WALL STREET JOURNAL

COLUMNIST AND DEPUTY EDITOR, DAN

HENNINGER AND COLUMNIST KIM

STRASSEL, BILL McGERN AND MARY

O'GRADY.

KIM, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT

IMPEACHMENT, I'M BEGINNING TO

THINK IN RETROSPECT THAT IT WAS

PROBABLY INEVITABLE.

WE WERE GOING TO GET IMPEACHMENT

ONE WAY OR ANOTHER FROM THE

DEMOCRATS WHO ARE REALLY INTENT

ON IT AND EVEN AFTER THE MUELLER

REPORT FAILED, THEY WERE GOING

TO LOOK FOR SOMETHING ELSE.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

>> WELL, THAT WAS REALLY THE

KEY.

WHEN THE MUELLER REPORT CAME

OVER, I THINK SOME OF US OUT

THERE WE WAITED MORE THAN TWO

YEARS AND WE THOUGHT OKAY, NOW

WE HAVE AN A ANSWER, IT'S TIME

TO PUT THIS BEHIND US.

BUT NO, THE MINUTE IT CAME OUT,

THEY DOUBLED DOWN.

THEY DRILLED IN ON THE

OBSTRUCTION PIECE OF HIS REPORT

EVEN THOUGH THE JUSTICE

DEPARTMENT SAID THIS WAS NOT

SOMETHING THAT COULD GO FORWARD.

AND IT WAS PRETTY CLEAR AT THAT

MOMENT THAT THIS WAS GOING TO

HAPPEN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER AND IT

WAS A QUESTION OF THEIR FINDING

THE RIGHT ISSUE TO HANG IT ON.

PAUL: ANYBODY DISAGREE WITH

THAT, THEY WERE GOING TO IMPEACH

HIM FOR JAY WALKING IF THEY HAD

TO.

>> THEY WERE CALLING FOR

IMPEACHMENT BARELY AFTER HE WAS

TAKING THE OATH OF OFFICE.

I THINK THIS IS RIGHT.

MRS. PELOSI TRIED TO RESIST IT

BUT THE POINT IS, THIS IS WHAT

THE BULK OF HER PARTY WANTED.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THOSE POLLS --

PAUL: THAT'S MY POINT.

>> YOU BREAK IT DOWN, IT'S

SOMETHING LIKE 90% THEY WERE

AGREED ON THAT.

MRS. PELOSI WAS THE OUTLIER IN

THOSE POLLS.

PAUL: GO AHEAD.

>> THE OTHER THING ABOUT THE

MUELLER REPORT THAT'S AMAZING IS

HOW HE BASICALLY DECIDED TO

IGNORE THE STEELE REPORT AND THE

IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTOPHER

STEELE'S REPORT, A FORMER

BRITISH SPY WHO WAS BASICALLY

HIRED TO TRY TO FIND DIRT ON

DONALD TRUMP.

PAUL: BY THE DEMOCRATS.

>> YEAH.

AND YOU KNOW, MUELLER JUST

DIDN'T GO INTO THAT AND I THINK

THERE'S SOMETHING WE LEARNED

MORE ABOUT NOT JUST ABOUT

MUELLER BUT IF YOU LOOK AT ALL

OF THIS, YOU SEE THAT THE

WASHINGTON ESTABLISHMENT WAS

HAPPY TO COVER UP FOR EACH

OTHER, ALL IN THE INTEREST OF

BASICALLY DAMAGING DONALD TRUMP.

>> LET'S TALK ABOUT THE

WASHINGTON ESTABLISHMENT.

I MEAN, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE TALK

ALL THE TIME ABOUT HOW RUN

TESTIFY OUR -- DISRUPTIVE OUR

POLITICS IS, HOW TENSE IT IS,

IT'S POLARIZING.

DONALD TRUMP DID NOT CREATE THE

RUSSIAN COLLUSION NARRATIVE,

RIGHT?

PAUL: RIGHT.

>> HE TALKS ABOUT WITCH HUNTS.

HE'S GOT A POINT.

IF YOU EXTRACTED THIS STUFF WHAT

YOU WOULD HAVE I THINK IS A MORE

OR LESS NORMAL PRESIDENCY.

TRUMP WOULD NEVER BE A NORMAL

PRESIDENT BUT WE WOULD BE

ARRESTING

ARGUSTING

ARGUINING

ARGUINGNG

ARGUING ABOUT NORMAL THINGS LIKE

IMMIGRATION AND OTHER TRULL P

POLICIES.

-- TRUMP POLICIES.

INSTEAD WE SPEND THE YEAR ON

THIS ZERO SUM COLLUSION

NARRATIVE WHICH IS VERY

DISRUPTIVE.

PAUL: DO YOU PUT ANY BLAME, A

LITTLE BIT, ON TRUMP FOR NOT

REPUTE DATING PUTIN AS MUCH AS

HE COULD.

>> HE COULD HAVE MADE THAT

CLEARER, FOR SURE.

IT WAS A TROUBLING ASPECT OF THE

ELECTION CAMPAIGN.

THEY IMPOSED MORE SANCTIONS ON

THE RUSSIAN THAN ANY PREVIOUS

ADMINISTRATION SO IT'S BEEN A

WASH FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE.

>> IT WOULDN'T HAVE MADE A

DIFFERENCE.

HOW DO WE KNOW?

I MEAN THAT SERIOUSLY.

HOW DO WE KNOW?

THEY GOT THE MUELLER REPORT.

YOU LOOK AT WHAT --

PAUL: THEY ARE STILL ACCUSING

HIM OF COLLUSION.

>> WHEN BOB MUELLER CAME IN,

THERE WAS ENOUGH EVIDENCE THAT

THIS WAS GOING NOWHERE, YET THEY

CONTINUED THE INVESTIGATION.

THE WHOLE THING FROM THE

BEGINNING IS FINDING OUT THAT

THE STEELE STUFF WAS NOT

CREDIBLE AND THEY WENT WITH IT

ANYWAY.

>> LET'S NOT FOR GET THE

INSPECTOR GENERAL'S REPORT WHICH

CAME OUT MORE RECENTLY.

THAT HAD EVIDENCE OF THE FBI

HIDING EXCULPATORY EVIDENCE.

THAT IS REALLY A SCANDAL.

IT'S TERRIFYING FOR I THINK

AMERICAN CITIZENS.

I MEAN, THOSE OF US WHO BELIEVE

IN CIVIL LIBERTIES, WHICH SHOULD

BE THE BULK OF WASHINGTON --

PAUL: EVERYBODY.

>> YEAH.

YOU HOW

HOU HOW

HOW HOW

HOW COW

HOW COME THERE'S SORT OF A YAWN?

PART OF THAT IS BECAUSE OF THE

MOST OF THE PRESS HAS BEEN

SPINNING IT, WHICH IS TRUMP IN A

PROBLEM.

PAUL: THE A ABUSES OF THE FBI

WERE R WORSE THAN ANYTHING WE

LEARNED ABOUT DONALD TRUMP AND

RUSSIA.

>> ABSOLUTELY.

THE IG REPORT HAS BEEN

ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATING TO THE

FBI AND WE ALREADY HAD REPORTS

COME OUT, I MEAN, PEOPLE FORGET,

SHORT MEMORIES, BUT WE'VE HAD

THREE REPORTS ABOUT JIM COMEY,

THE FORMER FBI DIRECTOR AND HIS

TENURE.

THE FIRST ONE, WHICH DEALT WITH

THE HILLARY CLINTON PROBE,

ACCUSED HIM OF BEING

INSUBORDINATE TO SUPERIORS.

WE HAD ONE ABOUT THE LEAK OF HIS

MEMO TO THE PRESS ABOUT THE

CONVERSATION WAS THE PRESIDENT

WHICH POINTED OUT WAS DANGEROUS,

RECKLESS BEHAVIOR AND WE HAVE AN

IG REPORT ABOUT THE FBI PLAYING

FAST AND LOOSE WITH THE FISA

COURT.

THIS REALLY DOES CALL INTO MANY

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WE

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WH

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WR

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WO

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WR

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WN

AMERICANS' MINDS R WHETHER OR WT

THEY CAN TRUST THE FBI AT ALL.

THERE'S BEEN INSTITUTIONAL

DAMAGE, ALL BECAUSE THEY WERE

GOING AFTER TRUMP.

BUT IT'S THE FBI WHO COMES OUT

LOOKING VERY POOR HERE.

PAUL: AND THE TWO YEARS SPENT

PURSUING THE COLLUSION NARRATIVE

AND ASSERTING IT NOTWITHSTANDING

A LACK OF EVIDENCE I THINK

REALLY HAS HURT THE ATTEMPT TO

NOW IMPEACH ON UKRAINE BECAUSE A

LOT OF THE PUBLIC SAYS WAIT A

MINUTE, WE HEARD ALL THIS BEFORE

AND WE CAN'T TRUST THESE PEOPLE

BECAUSE THEY'RE PUSHING -- THEY

PUSHED FALSEHOODS ON US BEFORE.

>> I THINK DEMOCRATS HAVE DONE

SOME DAMAGE TO THEMSELVES.

THEY COULD BE RUNNING AGAINST IN

THE ELECTION YEAR TRUMP'S

PERSONALITY AND HIS POLICIES.

THAT WOULD BE LEGITIMATE.

THEY ELEVATED IT TO THIS

SO-CALLED CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS

WHICH I THINK IS REALLY A BRIDGE