Recently, US President Donald Trump alleged on Twitter that the probe into allegations of Russian involvement in 2016 US elections was a “witch hunt”.
Speculation is rife about whether or not he will fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller who subpoenaed the Trump Organisation to turn over documents, including some related to the ongoing probe into the alleged Russian meddling.
Below is a summation of updates on the issue:
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- Breaking his silence on Trump’s tweets, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on 21 March said special counsel Robert Mueller should be allowed to "finish his job”of investigating into allegations of Russian involvement in 2016 US elections, AP reported. He also expressed his confidence in Mueller.
- Senator Chuck Schumer, on 21 March, said that McConnell’s statement was a “shot across the bow” and he hopes the president heeds it, Reuters reported.
- Two days after Special Counsel Robert Mueller subpoenaed the Trump Organisation to turn over documents related to the ongoing probe into the alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, in a fit of outbursts on Twitter, Trump, on 18 March, tweeted said that the probe “was a total witch hunt”.
- Firing Mueller will be easier said than done, as the appointment was made by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who can be the only person to fire him, as per regulations, Vox reported. The regulations state that such a person can only be fired because of “misconduct, dereliction of duty, incapacity, conflict of interest, or for other good cause”. But Rosenstein has so far seen no good cause to fire Mueller.
- In a press conference held on 21 March, the White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump is not considering or discussing the firing of Mueller. She also said any member accused of winning the election through nefarious ways would be anxious and defensive of their position.
- On 20 March, two Republican Senators Lindsey Graham and Jeff Flake independently suggested that Trump would be risking impeachment if he fired Mueller, CNN reported.
- Trump's legal team recently shared the documents in an effort to limit any session between the President and Mueller to a few select topics, The Washington Post reported quoting sources.
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