Bill to protect Mueller blocked in Senate
Legislation protecting special counsel Robert Mueller from being fired was blocked in the Senate on Wednesday.
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) asked for consent to bring the legislation, which has stalled after being passed in the Judiciary Committee in April, to the Senate floor for a vote.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blocked his request.
Under the Senate's rules, a senator can come to the Senate floor and ask for consent to get a vote or pass a bill. Any one senator can block their request.
Flake, speaking after McConnell's objection, knocked Trump's rhetoric on the Mueller probe, which is investigating Russian election interference and potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Moscow.
"With the firing of the attorney general … the president now has this investigation in his sights and we all know it," Flake said from the Senate floor.
He added that Trump had accused Mueller of a witch hunt "without basis or fact."
"How such an investigation can be the cause of controversy is beyond me. …[And] presidents do not get to determine what gets investigated and what and who does not," Flake said.
The Senate Judiciary Committee passed legislation that would protect Mueller, or any other special counsel, in the event he is fired, but the bill has stalled amid opposition from GOP leadership.
The bill would codify Justice Department regulations that say only a senior DOJ official can fire Mueller or another special counsel.
It would give a special counsel an "expedited review" of their firing. If a court determines that it wasn't for "good cause," the special counsel would be reinstated.
>https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/416746-bill-to-protect-mueller-blocked-in-senate