People Editor
Whether special counsel Robert Mueller, head of the investigation focusing on Russia’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election, should be fired due to his potential bias within the investigation is currently a popular subject of debate. The investigation strives to discover if Russia meddled in the 2016 election, leading to President Trump’s vistory. Trump is defensive about the entire investigation, publicly calling it a “hoax” and a “witch hunt.” Mueller, appointed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, took charge of the investigation when Trump suddenly fired former FBI director James Comey, who first opened the investigation.
Conservative groups are suspicious of Mueller’s impartiality as head of the investigation. A “watchdog” group sued the Justice Department to find if Mueller and Comey coordinated with each other before Comey’s testimony before the Senate. The group declared that it would be a scandal for the two of them to collaborate. Their relationship could potentially cause bias in the investigation, as part of the case includes Trump’s reasoning for firing Comey. On the other hand, a Fox News legal analyst argued that their potential communication before the appearance is entirely appropriate, as their combined resources would result in the most useful information. The analyst even explained that he expected this type of coordination before such an important appearance.
Congressman Matt Gaetz expressed his beliefs that either Mueller should resign or White House officials should fire him. Due to Mueller’s possible bias in this investigation, Gaetz spoke out against Mueller’s qualifications as a leader. Gaetz noted that Mueller served as FBI Director when former President Obama allowed a Russian company, Rosatom, to purchase a Canadian energy company, Uranium One in the US in 2010. Gaetz argued that this fact renders Mueller biased and unfit to head the investigation.
House Speaker Paul Ryan announced that Mueller should not be fired because, as a professional investigator, he should be able to continue doing his job. Ryan even stated that the firing of Mueller would prove the investigation to be corrupt, and he would then disavow President Trump.
White House officials publicly announced that they are not planning on firing Mueller, despite the allegations against him, beliefs on whether Mueller should step down or not continue to split many people and groups in the US.
(Sources: CNN, The Hill)
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