Trump Denies He Will Fire Mueller, But a Showdown Is Looming
There are growing contradictions in what President Donald Trump is saying about Special Counsel Robert Mueller. There’s a growing chance that the president will fire Mueller. Then again, his strategists will be advising against that.
As a reminder, Mueller has been brought in from retirement to investigate allegations that the Russian government interfered directly to influence the outcome of the U.S. presidential elections of 2016.
Addressing questions and rumors that he’s going to dismiss the former FBI director, President Trump has stated he has no intention to fire Mueller. Still, the suspicion persists that Trump and his team are considering dismissing Mueller, just as the suspicion persists that Trump intends to fire Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
There’s no question that when Trump sees even the slightest problem or obstacle in a working relationship, he takes swift action. Many have seen it in his TV show The Apprentice.
Similarly, many pundits watched in amazement as Trump fired some of his key presidential campaign associates. As soon as they became embroiled in difficulties that could have infected his presidency, Trump got rid of them like so much trash. Steve Bannon and Michael Flynn are just two of the most flagrant examples.
President Trump Fired Comey
Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, presumably because the president had reason to believe he did not have Comey’s full loyalty. Whatever the reason, there’s no doubting the fact that Trump would have no hesitation in firing Mueller. If he hasn’t yet, there are good reasons, and the president may be waiting for the appropriate opportunity.
There’s no doubt that Trump has grown rather impatient, if not downright annoyed, by the fact that Mueller and his team were able to acquire e-mails from the Trump transition team. Yet, despite the apparent excessive risk taking, Trump isn’t reckless. His firings are as calculated as they are impulsive. When he fired Comey, he must have had a solid reason (or what he thinks was a solid reason) to do so. He must have already considered the potential fallout.
Had Trump truly been guilty of the Russia collusion he is suspected of enabling, he would have been more careful about Comey, knowing full well that dismissing him would only have intensified the scent of distrust. Trump’s allies are hinting that, as annoyed as he might be with the investigation, he’s made his peace with it, not intending to fire Mueller. (Source: “Trump predicts exoneration in Russia investigation as allies fear a ‘meltdown’,” CNN Politics, December 18, 2017.)
The Showdown Will Be Between Trump’s Lawyers and Mueller
So far, Mueller has indicted a handful of people only, most notably Paul Manafort and Michael Flynn. But, in both cases, despite the triumphant cheers from die-hard Clintonites, the indictments have nothing to do with “Russiagate.”
Flynn supposedly lied to the FBI about doing something entirely normal and expected for a member of an incoming presidential team during a transition: talk to the Russian ambassador in December 2016. By FBI rules, you better remember what color underwear you have on, just in case you get it wrong and are charged for giving false testimony.
Manafort caught Mueller’s interest for dealings with the Ukrainian government of Viktor Yanukovych (events dating back to 2010, long before Trump decided to run for the White House).
Alex Wong/ Staff/Getty Images
Still, Trump can be impulsive. He and his team of lawyers are supposed to meet Mueller and his people before Christmas to get a sense of the investigation. If it goes badly, Trump’s temper could get the best of him. He might fire Mueller against his own best advice. Doing so would raise suspicions that Mueller is on to something important.
Indeed, more than being a battle between Mueller and Trump, it will be one between Mueller and Trump’s lawyers. They’re the ones who are going to take up the issue of the thousands of e-mails that the special counsel obtained (possibly illegally) from the transition team. (Source: “Image of Cooperation Between White House and Mueller Starts to Fracture,” The New York Times, December 17, 2017.)
Kory Langhofer, one of Trump’s lawyers, has sent a seven-page letter to the Department of Justice, accusing Mueller’s team of having violated the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, which protects against the search and seizure of material.
If Trump manages to keep his cool, he will allow Mueller to pursue whatever leads the special counsel has to the fullest. Then again, the president seems genuinely confident that investigators will find nothing to show that the Kremlin somehow managed to coordinate Trump’s election campaign to secure a win. Moreover, President Trump’s lawyers will have advised him against doing anything that could backfire.