Advertisement

Trump operatives launch media war against special counsel Robert Mueller

“He should let go of some of the business things.”

CREDIT: Fox News screengrab
CREDIT: Fox News screengrab

During an interview with the New York Times on Wednesday, President Trump said that if reports about Special Counsel Robert Mueller investigating his finances and the financial dealings of his family members are true, that would cross “a red line.”

Then, last night, the Washington Post reported that Trump “has asked his advisers about his power to pardon aides, family members and even himself in connection.” The Times reported that Trump’s lawyers and aides “are scouring the professional and political backgrounds of investigators hired by the special counsel [Mueller], looking for conflicts of interest they could use to discredit the investigation — or even build a case to fire Mr. Mueller or get some members of his team recused.”

On Friday, the Trump team launched a new media war against Mueller. White House adviser Kellyanne Conway and longtime Trump supporter Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) attacked Mueller and his investigation during TV interviews.

Advertisement

Conway urged Fox & Friends viewers to just take Trump’s word at face value, saying that Trump “said as recently as this week… that this is just a witch hunt, this is just a hoax.”

At one point during the interview, host Clayton Morris, playing devil’s advocate, said, “Critics are saying, why not just open the books? What is there to hide if the investigation turns to finances with hotels and Russian connections and all that other stuff? What’s to hide?

Conway dismissed the question.

“But what’s the point?” she said. “The question isn’t what is there to hide, the question is what was the purpose of this investigation in the first place? Russia.”

“The president said to the New York Times less than two days ago, ‘we don’t make money in Russia, we don’t have hotels in Russia,’” Conway added. “Let’s go back to what the purpose of the investigation was — Russian interference in our election.”

Meanwhile, on CNN, Collins said he “would hope that Mueller doesn’t cross the line into tax returns” and suggested Trump is above the law.

Advertisement

“And he should let go of some of the business things,” he added. “Let’s face it — the president is not subject to the normal ethics issues when it comes to business.”

Collins also indicated that Trump’s word is good enough for him, and should be for the American public as well.

“It’s just that this president has a very complex business relationship around the world but he’s been clear, the president has been clear that he doesn’t have those relationships with Russia,” he said.

Conway and Collins’ attacks on Mueller’s investigation came the morning after longtime Trump confidante Newt Gingrich — one of the leaders of the effort to impeach President Clinton that came at the end of a special investigation that spanned years — criticized Mueller for conducting a “witch hunt” and expanding the scope of his investigation during an interview on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show.

But Gingrich praised Mueller at the time of his selection as special counsel in May.

As ThinkProgress detailed at the time of Mueller’s appointment, his authority is broad. He’s empowered to investigate “any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump,” as well as “any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation.” Mueller can prosecute federal crimes uncovered during the course of his investigation.

Advertisement

Mueller, who was appointed FBI director in 2001 by Republican President George W. Bush, is widely respected on both sides of the aisle. But Trump surrogates starting turning on him after he hired a top criminal law practitioner to join his team last month.

During an interview on MSNBC interview Thursday night, presidential historian Michael Beschloss said that if Trump fires Mueller, a constitutional crisis dwarfing Watergate would ensue.