White House says Trump does not intend to fire special investigator in Russia case

The White House's chief lawyer has issued a statement saying that Donald Trump, the President of the United States, does not intend to fire Robert Mueller, the special investigator in the case concerning Russian "interference" in the 2016 elections. Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer, released this statement on March 18, shortly after several of Trump's tweets criticizing Mueller's activities and performance. The White House lawyer stated, "In response to speculation raised in the media and related questions from the government, the White House confirms and emphasizes that the President is neither considering the issue of firing Robert Mueller, the special investigator, nor has he spoken about it." Many politicians and lawmakers from the Democratic Party, as well as some senior Republican figures, have called for no action to be taken towards firing or hindering Mueller's ongoing activities. This group of U.S. politicians argues that Mueller's potential dismissal by Trump could lead to a constitutional crisis. Just hours before the White House lawyer's statement, Trump had accused the special investigator in the Russia case of bias. In his tweets, Trump directly targeted Robert Mueller, questioning why the members of his investigative team are made up of staunch Democrats. He stated in one of his tweets that "Mueller's investigation should never have taken place." This was the first time Trump mentioned Mueller by name in his tweets. A day before these tweets, Trump's own lawyer also stated that it is now time to end Mueller's investigations, although he later clarified that he was speaking "on his own behalf," not on behalf of the President. Robert Mueller, the former head of the FBI from 2001 to 2013, during the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, was appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice as a special investigator to address allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Under laws and authorities, he is able to issue subpoenas for any legal violations he finds during his investigations. Trump has repeatedly denied collusion and interaction between his campaign team and the Russian government during the U.S. presidential election. Moscow has also denied the allegations regarding interference in the U.S. elections.