RUSSIA PROBE Trump denies he ordered Mueller to be dismissed
WASHINGTON — President Trump on Friday denied that he had ordered the firing of Robert Mueller, the special counsel in the Russia probe. The president called reports of the June incident “fake news.”
The New York Times reported Thursday that Trump ordered Donald McGahn, his top White House lawyer, to dismiss Mueller just weeks after Mueller took over the Russia investigation. McGahn refused to ask the Justice Department to fire Mueller, saying he would quit instead, and the president relented.
Trump responded to the Times report during a trip to Davos, Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum, a gathering of world leaders and global business executives.
Upon arrival at the Congress Center in Davos, Trump was greeted by a scrum of the forum’s participants snapping cell phone photos and by a large group of reporters asking why he had ordered Mueller’s firing.
“Fake news, folks,” Trump replied. “Fake news. Typical New York Times fake story.”
The Times report was based on four people who were told of the matter. On Thursday, Ty Cobb, who manages the White House relationship with Mueller’s office, declined to comment.
The June incident could emerge as an important part of Mueller’s probe, part of which is looking into whether Trump or anyone in the White House or associated with his campaign obstructed justice by trying to impede investigators looking into the possibility of campaign-related collusion with Russia.
Trump’s order to fire Mueller came in the month after the president did fire the FBI director, James Comey, later citing the Russia probe as the reason for his decision. At the time, Comey was in charge of the FBI’s investigation into collusion with Russia during the election. The firing of Comey in May directly led to Mueller’s appointment.
Trump’s denial of the June incident echoes repeated statements by the president and other White House officials that Trump had never considered firing the special prosecutor.
“I haven’t given it any thought,” Trump told reporters in August. “Well, I’ve been reading about it from you people. You say, oh, I’m going to dismiss him. No, I’m not dismissing anybody.”
John Dowd, the president’s personal lawyer, said that same month that firing Mueller has “never been on the table, never.”