Graham: Mueller should probe report Trump wanted to fire him

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Sunday said special counsel Robert Mueller should take a look at reports that President Trump tried to fire him last summer.

“I don’t know if the story is true or not, but I know this: Mueller should look at it,” Graham said on ABC’s “This Week.” 

{mosads}Graham’s comments follow a New York Times report this week saying Trump wanted to fire Mueller last June.

Trump reportedly backed off of the order when White House counsel Don McGahn threatened to quit. 

“Don McGahn, if the story is true in The New York Times, did the right thing, and the good news is the president listened,” Graham said. 

“The investigation needs to go forward without political interference, and I’m sure it will,” he continued. “As a matter of fact, I think Mr. Mueller is the perfect guy to get to the bottom of all this, and he will.”

“I see no evidence President Trump wants to fire Mr. Mueller now,” he continued. “I don’t know what happened last year, but it’s pretty clear to me that everybody in the White House knows it would be the end of President Trump’s presidency if he fired Mr. Mueller.” 

The president has called the report he wanted to fire Mueller “fake news.” 

Graham and other lawmakers have since drafted legislation aimed at protecting special counsels from interference.

Mueller’s probe into Russia’s election meddling has come under intense scrutiny from various Republicans who have said the investigation could be biased, citing text messages critical of Trump between two FBI employees who formerly worked with Mueller.

The employees have since been removed from the probe. 

Despite the Republican backlash over the messages, Graham said he still has full confidence in the special counsel. 

“All this stuff about the FBI and [Department of Justice] having a bias against Trump and for Clinton needs to be looked at, but I never believed it affected Mr. Mueller,” he said. 

— Updated 10:19 a.m.