Mueller Time wasn’t ‘complete and total exoneration’

[Bloomberg]( Today’s Agenda - [Not exactly]( “complete and total exoneration.” - What [pot businesses need]( to thrive. - A Fed [lifeline to states](. - China is [nirvana for traders](. Programming note: Bloomberg Opinion Today will be off on Friday. The Mueller Backlash Backlashes I spent a long time — OK, maybe two minutes — thinking of the perfect quip to start an inevitable recap of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian involvement in the 2016 election. “It’s Mueller time” was too obvious. Mueller, Mueller, Mueller? How do you solve a problem like Bob Mueller? Those were the best ones, if you can believe it. Anyway, the Justice Department [released]( a 448-page, slightly redacted version of Mueller’s report for public viewing — and oh, how the public [did view it](. The report was not exactly a “complete and total exoneration” of President Donald Trump, as the commander in chief has claimed since U.S. Attorney General William Barr summarized Mueller’s findings last month. Mueller said he found at least 10 cases of possible obstruction of justice by Trump, and the special counsel’s report exhaustively catalogs his lies. Ultimately, investigators pointedly did not exonerate the president nor did they conclude he committed the crime of obstruction. Cass Sunstein was puzzled by this opaque conclusion, but he [finds two possible meanings]( — and says the likelier reading is far more damning. It’s possible Mueller wasn’t sure whether the president did obstruct justice, so he decided to lay out the evidence without reaching a conclusion. Or, Cass says, Mueller believed the president probably did obstruct justice but believed he couldn’t be charged because of Justice Department practice that a current president can’t be charged with a crime. Cass says the report hints it’s the latter explanation, which is devastating to Trump. All in all, it wasn’t a great day for the president — although he said it was — nor was it a great day for his attorney general, who held a news conference that was basically [spin for Trump](, writes Jonathan Bernstein. Barr defended the president’s actions by saying things like, Sure, Trump might have tried to hinder Mueller’s investigation, but only because he was frustrated. Jonathan says excusing Trump’s behavior and glossing over unflattering facts from the Mueller investigation was inappropriate cheerleading from Barr. We Resisted So Many Obvious Puns Marijuana is still illegal in the U.S., but that isn’t stopping investors and big companies from making investments in cannabis growers and other pot businesses. Most investors are focused on crop yields, greenhouse acreage and other aspects of cultivation, but they’re wrong to focus on the supply chain, write Tara Lachapelle and Sarah Halzack. Marlboro parent company Altria doesn’t grow tobacco. It buys it from existing producers and built its empire through savvy marketing and distribution. The same should be true for cannabis companies, Tara and Sarah argue. The companies that want to break out [must be smart about branding]( and creating compelling experiences in retail stores. And most important, they need to focus on products like CBD beauty items, wellness drinks and marijuana-infused edibles that appeal to the many people who don’t want to smoke joints. Don’t Forget About the Sickly States U.S. states were in such bad shape during the Great Recession that California had to issue IOUs, and they’ll be vulnerable in the next economic downturn, too, which may force painful cuts to public services, a spike in taxes or shortchanged public pensions. It might be up to the Federal Reserve to [directly buy municipal bonds]( to prop up the states, Brian Chappatta writes in the latest from a Bloomberg Opinion series about planning for the next recession. There are problems with this approach. It’s not legal, for one. But Brian says there is precedent from other countries’ central banks, and with well-defined limits, the Fed can do the most good with direct muni purchases. Stock Trading Is Yawn, Except in China On Wednesday, we wrote about the problems [lurking beneath the surface]( of China’s economy. Still, the country may be [the best place left for traders]( to make real money, Shuli Ren writes. Why? In much of the world, stock- and bond-trading volumes are anemic and investors are moving away from the fees and uneven returns of active stock picking. That's not great for the income of traders and investment banks. In China, Shuli writes, stock trading is churning and active fund managers are raking in investment dollars. It’s an inefficient and cutthroat business, but motivated traders can make a mint. Related reading: Wall Street [can’t shut up about China](. – Robert Burgess Telltale Charts Samsung Electronics Co. was never going to sell many of its $2,000 folding smartphones. But isolated reports of botched test units [threaten to poison interest in a new device]( category that could juice declining smartphone sales, Alex Webb writes. Consumer-product titans Unilever and Nestle both need to grow faster and improve profits. Investors believe [Nestle is on firmer footing](, and Andrea Felsted says they’re right. Further Reading The Pentagon needs to [crack down harder]( on contractors responsible for data breaches. – Bloomberg’s editorial board India and the country’s biggest oil refiner should be wary of growing [more reliant on Saudi Arabian crude oil](. – David Fickling Private equity firms are [prioritizing Japan over China](, for political reasons as much as financial ones. – Nisha Gopalan Ignore the noise from supporters and critics of the recent U.S. corporate tax cuts. It’s [too early to tell]( if tax cuts are working. – Michael R. Strain San Francisco’s possible takeover of its local power grid [wouldn’t insulate the city from risk](. – Liam Denning One tech IPO this week was boring and pragmatic. The other flashy and dreamy. [Boring had a better debut](. – Shira Ovide The bond market is starting to wake up to the [risk of Italy’s next crisis](. – Marcus Ashworth ICYMI [More]( and [more]( and [more]( on the Mueller report. American [tweens get a taste of Chinese censorship](. The National Enquirer [is being sold](. Kickers I found [two identical bags of Skittles]( among 468 packs. [Walmart makes $6,000 bicycles](. “[Portioned, chewable nutrition](.” That’s not an in-flight map. It’s “[geotainment](.” Note: I'm filling in this week for Mark Gongloff. Please send feedback and DO NOT send portioned, chewable nutrition to Shira Ovide at sovide@bloomberg.net. [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]( [Twitter Share]( SEND TO A FRIEND [Share with a friend] You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022