Both Democrats and Republicans will act like fools during Mueller's testimony this week, and there's a simple reason why

Robert Mueller's public testimony before two congressional committees is scheduled for Wednesday this week, and the circus surrounding it is in full swing.

While Mueller's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee will likely be fireworks-free, it's his testimony before the House Judiciary Committee that is likely to produce the kind of farcical theater both Republicans and Democrats are hoping for.

Neither Democrats or Republicans are looking to do anything productive. Robert Mueller, in his role as special counsel, released a more than 400-page report on the Russia investigation and his office's findings. All the information any member of Congress needs is in that report.

And Mueller isn't a novice. He's testified over 60 times in front of congressional committees during his time as director of the FBI. People shouldn't expect any deer-in-the-headlights moments from him, mainly because he's smarter than everyone who will question him.

The more likely scenario is a national broadcast of partisan Congressional buffoonery with a cast of characters that will do more to embarrass their constituents than represent them.

For Democrats, the goal is not to find out anything new, but to get Mueller, whether directly or indirectly, to agree with them on a rationale for impeachment. They'll surely ask about obstruction of justice.

Democrats will point to a letter signed by hundreds of former prosecutors saying Trump would have faced charges of obstruction of justice if he wasn't the president. But that's irrelevant because Trump is the president, so why bother? Still, that won't stop blockheads like Eric Swalwell of California, Steve Cohen of Tennessee and Sheila Jackson-Lee of Texas from questioning Mueller as though an "Ah-ha!" moment will present itself.

Democrats hope to strengthen public support for Trump's impeachment and in turn place pressure on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to move forward with an impeachment inquiry.

There will be no shortage of tomfoolery on the GOP side, either.

The trio of carnival barkers, Jim Jordan of Ohio, Matt Gaetz of Florida and Louis Gohmert of Texas, will no doubt have lots of questions for Mueller. I wouldn't, however, expect to hear many, as they will likely use the bulk of their time railing about the "deep state" and looking to pin down Mueller on their theory that the Russia investigation was, as President Trump calls it, a “witch hunt”.

They will limit their questions to asking about his staff choices as well as his relationship with Jim Comey and Rod Rosenstein. Republicans will also attempt to cast the FBI as a government entity that allowed rogue agents to operate within its midst freely, who, when they couldn't stop Trump from getting elected, instead moved to plan B, which was a coordinated effort to take him down.

Instead of learning anything new and presenting it to the public for consumption, people will get nothing but recycled talking points with a smattering of drama sprinkles. It will all make great fodder for cable news shows but won't produce anything tangible.

There was a time when televised congressional hearings provided at least a semblance of value to the voting public. Indeed, a lot of people don't have time to absorb a 400-page report on the Russia investigation and public hearings designed to educate the public would be a welcome respite from what we've seen as of late.

All one has to do is look back at the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. That hippodrome featured plenty of members of Congress giving speeches before asking questions unrelated to his experience and temperament.

The Mueller hearings won't be much better. Whatever one thinks of the final product Mueller's office produced, that's the crux of it. Republicans or Democrats will not land a fatal blow that we haven't heard about already from the original report. In the end, it will likely be an exercise in futility — but when there's congressional preening to do, that apparently doesn't matter.