Special counsel set to investigate Trump conduct
DONALD TRUMP is under investigation for possible obstruction of justice by the special counsel appointed to examine Russia’s role in the presidential election, it was reported last night.
The US president last month fired James Comey, the former FBI director who had been investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election and links between Trump aides and Moscow.
Mr Comey told Congress last week he believed he was fired by Mr Trump to undermine the agency’s Russia investigation. The US president had previously received assurances from Mr Comey that he was not under investigation. However, several unnamed officials told The Washington Post that the US president was now himself being investigated.
Senior intelligence officials, including Daniel Coats, the director of national intelligence and Mike Rogers, the head of the National Security Agency, have agreed to be interviewed by the special counsel as early as next week, the report stated. The move, if confirmed, would mark a significant escalation in the scope of the investigation and increase pressure on the US president. Robert Mueller, himself a former FBI director, was appointed last month to run the special counsel following Mr Comey’s dismissal.
The shift towards investigating the president himself began days after the firing of Mr Comey as FBI director on May 9, the report said.
Quoting officials, The Washington
Post said one event of interest to Mr Mueller was an exchange on March 22, when Mr Coats told associates that Mr Trump had asked him to intervene with Mr Comey to get him to take the focus off Mr Trump’s former national security adviser, Mike Flynn, as part of the FBI probe. Mr Trump denies any collusion between himself or any of his associates and Russia.
A spokesman for Mr Trump’s lawyer last night said “the FBI leak of information regarding the president is outrageous, inexcusable and illegal”.
There were claims earlier this week that Mr Trump was also considering “terminating” Mr Mueller. However, the White House yesterday said the president had no plans to do so.
Christopher Ruddy, a friend of Mr Trump’s, had claimed that the president was considering firing Mr Mueller and questions were raised by Trump aides over the former FBI director’s impartiality. “While the president has the right to, he has no intention to do so,” Sarah Sanders, a White House spokesman said. The effort to muddy the waters surrounding the investigation is coming amid growing White House concern that the Russia probe could detract from the president’s agenda for months or years to come.
On Tuesday, senators questioned both attorney general Jeff Sessions and deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein on how the inquiry was being handled. Mr Sessions vehemently denied any collusion with Russia to tilt last year’s election in Mr Trump’s favour. He was being questioned as part of a separate congressional hearing on the subject.