It was clear from the first 60 minutes of testimony by former special counsel Robert S. Mueller on Wednesday morning before the House Judiciary Committee that he was not going to give the Democrats what they were seeking: A dramatic recitation of the evidence against President Trump for a clear and quick takedown.

Mr. Mueller indicated in late May his reluctance to testify before Congress. “The report is my testimony,” he said at the time. 

On Wednesday, his clipped, one-word answers showed he didn’t intend to go beyond what was in his two volume, 448-page report released in April. 

Mr. Mueller did, however, confirm that his investigation did not exonerate President Trump of obstruction of justice for attempting to influence the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

The report from his 22-month probe showed that President Trump attempted to fire Mr. Mueller, limit the scope of the investigation and influence witness testimony, among other things, that could constitute obstruction of justice.

But Mr. Mueller’s report declined to reach any legal conclusion on whether President Trump committed any crimes. Instead, his report cited a U.S. Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted.

For months, we have called for weak, lemming-like Democrats under the spell of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to grow a backbone and start impeachment proceedings against President Trump, who has long believed and acted like he is above the law.

Earlier this week, delegates at the NAACP’s 110th annual national convention in Detroit unanimously voted for President Trump’s impeachment.

 “The pattern of Trump’s misconduct is unmistakable and has proven time and time again that he is unfit to serve as the president of this country,” NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson said in a statement.

Mr. Johnson said the reasons for demanding President Trump’s impeachment are numerous.

“From his attempts to curtail the scope of Robert Mueller’s investigation to calling out minority congresswomen and telling them to go back to their countries, to caging immigrant children without food or water to his numerous attempts to avert the Supreme Court’s decision to not add in the citizenship question to the 2020 Census,” Mr. Johnson said, “this president has led one of the most racist and xenophobic administrations since the Jim Crow era. Trump needs to know that he is not above the law … and he must be prosecuted. We will make sure that the NAACP is at the forefront of pushing Congress to proceed with the impeachment process.”

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives voted down articles of impeachment introduced by Congressman Al Green of Texas, a Democrat and African-American who is in tune with what the American people see and want in this situation. But a majority of Democrats voted with Republicans to siderail Rep. Green’s effort by referring the articles to a committee. 

If nothing else, Mr. Mueller’s testimony proves that the task of impeaching possibly the worst president in U.S. history rests squarely with the weak-willed Democrats with a weak-willed leader and no one else. They must grow the courage to bell the cat — rather than attempting to leave it to Mr. Mueller or someone else — or voters should send them packing in the next election.

 Mr. Mueller’s report, while not a quick summer beach read or a likely blockbuster movie, offers a clear road map of the crimes President Trump committed. We urge our readers to call, write, email and text their representatives in Congress and tell them to get moving to impeach President Trump.

To reach your representatives in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, call (202) 225-3121 or go to www.house.gov or www.senate.gov.