Does Congress Need to Pass a Mueller Protection Bill?
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What’s the story?
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump took direct aim at special counsel Robert Mueller, tweeting:
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!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 18, 2018
The president continued his twitter attack on Monday morning, writing:
A total WITCH HUNT with massive conflicts of interest!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 19, 2018
Is it now time for Congress to pass one of its Mueller protection bills?
Special Counsel Independence Protection Act
In August, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced this bill – co-sponsored by Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) – that would ensure any action the DOJ might take to fire a special counsel must first be reviewed by a panel of federal judges.
Graham said:
"Checks and balances have served the country well for the past two hundred years. Our legislation would allow judicial review of the firing of any special counsel that was impaneled to look at the President or their team – regardless of party. I think this is a good check and balance, both for today and in the future."
The House’s Special Counsel Integrity Act
This bill would specify that a special counsel can only be disciplined or removed by an Attorney General who has been confirmed by the Senate, or the most senior Senate-confirmed Dept. of Justice (DOJ) official who isn’t recused from the matter.
When sponsoring Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) introduced this bill in December, he said:
"The president never declared he wasn’t going to fire Comey, but he fired Comey… When somebody comes at him like Mr. Comey did and like Mr. Mueller has, there’s a goodly chance he will fire him. But the issue is what standards should there be to determine whether he should be fired. The president is not the king… The president doesn’t have unlimited powers… It’s not the issue of whether or not you believe Trump’s not going to fire him; it’s what the law should be if he changes his mind, and for the next president and the next president."
The Senate’s Special Counsel Integrity Act
This is the Senate’s version of the House bill.
Sponsoring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced this bill to allow a judicial review if a special counsel is removed.
"It is critical that special counsels have the independence and resources they need to lead investigations. A back-end judicial review process to prevent unmerited removals of special counsels not only helps to ensure the investigatory independence, but also reaffirms our nation’s system of checks and balances," Tillis said.
What do you think?
Does Congress need to act on a bill to protect Mueller from being fired? Or, as some Republican members of Congress have said, is the legislation unnecessary? Let Congress know your thoughts by hitting Take Action. Then share your thoughts below.
—Josh Herman
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(Photo Credit: @realdonaldtrump via Twitter)
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