Will GOP leaders rise to the moment on Russia inquiry?
Just hours after President Trump abruptly fired the man leading an FBI investigation into links between Russia and the Trump campaign, a White House spokeswoman told the American public to “let that go” because “there’s nothing there.”
Really? The classless firing of James Comey — ostensibly because, Trump said Thursday, the FBI director was “a showboat” and “a grandstander” whose agency was “in turmoil” — comes at a sensitive time in the inquiry.
Comey was seeking a significant increase in investigative resources, according to Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. The first grand jury subpoenas were just issued, for business records of fired national security adviser Michael Flynn’s associates, CNN reported.
Comey told senators in a closed briefing that he had “substantial information,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said Wednesday. And, in congressional testimony on Thursday, acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe called the investigation “highly significant.”
Even if there’s more smoke than fire at this point, it’s not for the White House to decide that it’s time to “move on.”
Rather, this is a time for Republicans in Congress to stand up and be counted. Sure, plenty of Democrats are angry and upset about Comey’s dismissal. But they alone can’t prevent Trump from thwarting a troublesome investigation.
Leaders on both sides of the aisle owe Americans assurances that an impartial and independent inquiry will get to the bottom of any possible collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign — and of any efforts by Trump to obstruct that inquiry.
Contradicting previous White House accounts, the president told NBC News on Thursday that it was his idea to fire Comey. Trump said he had three times plied the FBI director with questions about whether he was under investigation, a highly inappropriate line of inquiry.
Whether senior Republican leaders will rise to the historical moment remains unclear. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s blithe defense of Comey’s ouster, and dismissal of calls for a new investigation, was not encouraging.
But hopeful signs of dissent are emerging among other Senate Republicans, including Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain of Arizona, Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, and Sens. Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Jeff Flake of Arizona.
There’s important precedent for a two-party approach. Republican Sen. Howard Baker of Tennessee became a towering figure in political history when he boldly asked, “What did the president know, and when did he know it?” while serving as vice chairman of a select committee to investigate President Nixon during the Watergate scandal.
Bipartisan voices will be crucial in assuring the public that the truth about Russia and Trump will be uncovered, and that a nominee to replace Comey will receive thorough vetting. In the end, Republican lawmakers might well discover that acting in the interest of the American people is identical to acting in the long-term interest of their party.