Mueller could be in Trump’s sights
UNITED STATES: A close personal friend of Donald Trump has raised the politically explosive possibility that the US president could take action to fire Robert Mueller, the recently appointed special counsel tasked with looking into Russian meddling in last year’s election and potential collusion with the Trump campaign.
‘‘I think he’s considering perhaps terminating the special counsel,’’ Christopher Ruddy said during an appearance on PBS’S Newshour. ’’I think he’s weighing that option.’’
Ruddy, who is chief executive of Newsmax Media and a member of Trump’s Mar-a-lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, confirmed his view in a text message to The Washington Post but did not elaborate.
Ruddy told PBS that he thought it would be ‘‘a very significant mistake’’ for Trump to seek Mueller’s termination.
Ruddy appears to have based his assessment on comments made by a member of Trump’s personal legal team. During an appearance on ABC News’s This Week, Jay Sekulow said he was ‘‘not going to speculate’’ on whether the president might order the firing of Mueller, but added that he ‘‘can’t imagine the issue is going to arise’’.
Trump does have the authority to remove the special counsel. Muller was appointed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and Trump could order Rosenstein to fire him, or he could order that regulations that govern the appointment be repealed and then fire Mueller himself.
Such an action would be politically perilous. Former president Richard Nixon’s attempt to remove a special prosecutor during his tenure led to the resignations of two top Justice Department officials amid the Watergate scandal.
The prospect floated by Ruddy puts Rosenstein in an awkward position. He is scheduled to testify before two congressional hearings today, and is likely to face even more pointed questions about the Russia probe and the independence of the Justice Department in light of Ruddy’s comments.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions is also scheduled to testify today before the Senate Intelligence Committee, a venue where the possibility of firing Mueller could arise. Sessions has recused himself from the Russia probe, a move that gave Rosenstein the authority to appoint a special counsel.
National Security Agency chief Mike Rogers met behind closed doors yesterday with the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Senators made it clear that they want Rogers to answer questions about any possible interference by Trump in the FBI’S investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election. He and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats refused to answer those questions last week in a public hearing.
Sessions will testify publicly before the panel in a hastily scheduled hearing just days after fired FBI director James Comey last week accused Trump of lying about his dismissal and pressuring him to end an investigation of former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
In a sign of how damaging the administration considers Comey’s testimony to be, Sessions volunteered to appear before the panel. However, in a move that could infuriate lawmakers, he has told the committee he will refuse to discuss his conversations with the president, according to a person familiar with Sessions’ plan.
Asked if Sessions will claim that some of his conversations are subject to executive privilege and won’t be shared with Congress, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said yesterday: ‘‘I think it depends on the scope of the questions, and to get into a hypothetical at this point would be premature.’’
- Washington Post, Bloomberg