President Donald Trump on Sunday took out his frustrations over the intensifying Russia investigation by lashing out at special counsel Robert Mueller, signalling a possible shift away from a strategy of co-operating with a probe he believes is biased against him.
In a series of weekend tweets naming Mueller for the first time, Trump criticized the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and raised fresh concerns about the objectivity and political leanings of the members of Mueller鈥檚 team.
Trump also challenged the honesty of Andrew McCabe, the newly fired FBI deputy director, and James Comey, the bureau鈥檚 former director whom Trump fired last year over the Russia probe.
The president鈥檚 aggressive stance followed a call Saturday by his personal lawyer for Rod Rosenstein, whom Trump appointed as deputy attorney general and who now oversees Mueller鈥檚 inquiry, to 鈥渂ring an end鈥� to that investigation.
The Mueller probe should never have been started in that there was no collusion and there was no crime. It was based on fraudulent activities and a Fake Dossier paid for by Crooked Hillary and the DNC, and improperly used in FISA COURT for surveillance of my campaign. WITCH HUNT!
鈥� Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee, which spent the past year conducting a parallel investigation, recently said they had drafted a report concluding no collusion or co-ordination between Trump鈥檚 presidential campaign and Russia. Committee Democrats vehemently disagreed.
鈥淭he Mueller probe should never have been started in that there was no collusion and there was no crime,鈥� Trump tweeted Saturday. 鈥淚t was based on fraudulent activities and a Fake Dossier paid for by Crooked Hillary and the DNC, and improperly used in FISA COURT for surveillance of my campaign. WITCH HUNT!鈥� Trump was referring to a dossier of anti-Trump research funded by the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton鈥檚 campaign.
Likely adding to Trump鈥檚 growing frustration, The New York Times reported last week that Mueller had subpoenaed the Trump Organization and requested Russia-related documents. Trump had said Mueller would cross a red line with such a step.
鈥淲hy does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans?鈥� Trump tweeted Sunday.
Why does the Mueller team have 13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans? Another Dem recently added...does anyone think this is fair? And yet, there is NO COLLUSION!
鈥� Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
Related:
Some of Mueller鈥檚 investigators indeed have contributed to Democratic political candidates, but Justice Department policy and federal service law bar discrimination in the hiring of career positions on the basis of political affiliation. Mueller is a Republican.
A deeply frustrated Trump has fumed to confidants that the Mueller probe is 鈥済oing to choke the life out of鈥� his presidency if allowed to continue unabated indefinitely, according to an outside adviser who insisted on anonymity to discuss private conversations with the president.
Trump has long believed that the entrenched bureaucracy, particularly at the Justice Department and FBI, is out to thwart him, and has pointed to McCabe鈥檚 wife鈥檚 associations with Democrats, including longtime Clinton ally Terry McAuliffe, as an example. He also fumed to one confidant after seeing a promotion for Comey鈥檚 forthcoming book, and believes the former FBI director will seek to enrich himself by besmirching Trump鈥檚 reputation. Comey鈥檚 book, 鈥淎 Higher Loyalty,鈥� topped Amazon.com鈥檚 bestseller list on Sunday.
The president has long been torn over how to approach the Mueller probe. Trump insists that his campaign did not collude with Russia, and his legal team, namely attorney Ty Cobb, has counselled the president to co-operate with Mueller. But some former campaign advisers have urged Trump to be combative, warning him that that the investigation poses an existential threat to his presidency.
Trump鈥檚 attacks raised new concerns among members of Congress that he could be seeking to orchestrate Mueller鈥檚 firing. Republican and Democratic lawmakers warned Trump to not even think about it.
Related:
鈥淚f he tried to do that, that would be the beginning of the end of his presidency,鈥� said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump ally.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., called for the passage of bipartisan bills designed to protect Mueller that have stalled in Congress.
鈥淭his president is engaged in desperate and reckless conduct to intimidate his law enforcement agencies of this country and to try and stop the special counsel. That is unacceptable in a democracy,鈥� Durbin said.
Trump cannot directly fire Mueller, who can only be dismissed for cause. Any dismissal of Mueller would have to be carried out by Rosenstein, who has publicly expressed his support for Mueller.
Aides and friends say they understand Trump鈥檚 frustration with an investigation that hangs over his presidency.
鈥淲hen he says it鈥檚 a political witch hunt, I think he鈥檚 right,鈥� said Christopher Ruddy, CEO of the conservative news website 亚洲天堂max and a longtime Trump friend.
Marc Short, Trump鈥檚 congressional liaison, said the president鈥檚 frustration is 鈥渨ell-warranted鈥� because 鈥渢here has been no evidence whatsoever of collusion.鈥�
Trump may have felt emboldened after Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired McCabe on Friday. 鈥淎 great day for Democracy,鈥� Trump tweeted afterward. Trump asserted without elaboration that McCabe, whose firing he had publicly called for, knew 鈥渁ll about the lies and corruption going on at the highest levels of the FBI!鈥�
The Associated Press later reported that McCabe kept personal memos detailing interactions with Trump that have been provided to Mueller鈥檚 office and are similar to notes compiled by Comey. Trump sought to cast doubt on their veracity.
鈥淪pent very little time with Andrew McCabe, but he never took notes when he was with me,鈥� Trump tweeted Sunday. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe he made memos except to help his own agenda, probably at a later date. Same with lying James Comey. Can we call them Fake Memos?鈥�
It wouldn鈥檛 be unusual for a senior official to make notes soon after meeting with the president.
Trump also claimed Comey lied under oath at a Senate hearing by saying he had never been an anonymous source. Comey, who is releasing a book next month, tweeted Saturday after McCabe鈥檚 firing: 鈥淢r. President, the American people will hear my story very soon. And they can judge for themselves who is honourable and who is not.鈥�
The contents of McCabe鈥檚 memos are unknown, but they could help substantiate McCabe鈥檚 assertion that he was unfairly maligned by a White House he says had declared 鈥渨ar鈥� on the FBI and Mueller鈥檚 investigation.
Related:
Sessions said he dismissed McCabe on the recommendation of FBI disciplinary officials who said McCabe had not been candid with a watchdog office investigation. An upcoming inspector general鈥檚 report is expected to conclude that McCabe had authorized the release of information to the media and was not forthcoming with the watchdog office as it examined the bureau鈥檚 handling of an investigation into Clinton鈥檚 emails.
McCabe has vigorously disputed the allegations and said his credibility had been attacked as 鈥減art of a larger effort not just to slander me personally鈥� but also the FBI and law enforcement.
Also over the weekend, Trump鈥檚 personal lawyer, John Dowd, cited the 鈥渂rilliant and courageous example鈥� by Sessions and the FBI鈥檚 Office of Professional Responsibility and said Rosenstein should 鈥渂ring an end鈥� to the Russia investigation 鈥渕anufactured鈥� by Comey.
In response, Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., said: 鈥淚f you have an innocent client, Mr. Dowd, act like it.鈥�
Dowd told the AP that he wasn鈥檛 calling on Rosenstein to fire the special counsel immediately and hadn鈥檛 discussed with him the idea of dismissing Mueller or ending the probe. Dowd also said he was speaking for himself and not the president.
Mueller is investigating whether Trump鈥檚 actions, including Comey鈥檚 ouster, constitute obstruction of justice.
___
Associated Press writers Chad Day and Eric Tucker in Washington and Jonathan Lemire in New York contributed to this report.
___
Darlene Superville, The Associated Press
Like us on and follow us on .
