Reuters
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the special counsel’s probe into Russian interference in the U.S. election and possible collusion with the Trump campaign (all times local):
7:40 a.m.
The top Democrat on the House Intelligence committee says Congress would not sit still if President Donald Trump decided to fire the special counsel leading the investigation into Russian interference in the U.S. election and possible collusion with Trump’s campaign.
Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, says such a move would “be the last straw” for many in Congress and would have “echoes of Watergate,” when President Richard Nixon dismissed special prosecutor Archibald Cox over Cox’s subpoenas for White House tapes.
Trump’s allies have begun raising questions about special counsel Robert Mueller’s impartiality — he’s a former FBI director who has worked with fired FBI Director James Comey — and floating the idea that Trump might replace him.
Schiff says that if Trump fires Mueller, Congress might name its own independent counsel to investigate the case. He told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that “I don’t think the Congress would sit still and allow the president to pick his own investigator.”
Alex Wong/Getty Images
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4:26 a.m.
High-profile supporters of President Donald Trump are turning on special counsel Robert Mueller, the man charged with investigating Russian interference in the U.S. election and possible collusion with Trump’s campaign.
Trump friend Chris Ruddy, the CEO of Newsmax, has gone so far as to suggest the president was already thinking about “terminating” Mueller.
Ruddy said in an interview Monday with Judy Woodruff of PBS, “I think he’s weighing that option.”
Under current Justice Department regulations, firing Mueller would have to be done by deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein, not the president— though those regulations could theoretically be set aside.
Rosenstein may be asked to address the issue when he speaks at a Senate subcommittee hearing Tuesday morning.
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