McCabe feared Comey firing would end Russia probe
WASHINGTON — Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe said in an interview that aired Thursday he moved quickly after his boss was fired to protect an investigation into President Donald Trump's ties to Russia and prevent it from being shut down in case he, too, was dismissed.
Concerned when Trump fired FBI Director James Comey not long after taking office, McCabe also said Justice Department officials had discussed bringing the Cabinet together to consider using the Constitution's 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office, according to CBS, which conducted the interview and will air it Sunday on “60 Minutes.”
CBS described McCabe's comments on the 25th Amendment in a news story about its interview but did not release excerpts from that part.
The Justice Department did not deny those discussions took place but said in a statement that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein does not believe there is a basis for invoking the 25th Amendment, which enables Cabinet members to seek a president's ouster if they believe he or she is unfit for office.
McCabe's interview comes ahead of the release next week of his memoir, “The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump.”
The book and the publicity around it are likely to refocus attention on the tumultuous eight-day period between Trump's firing of Comey and Rosenstein's appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel to investigate possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.