Grassley to Trump: You can’t let McGahn leave

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Wednesday pushed back on President Trump’s announcement that White House counsel Don McGahn would leave in the fall, saying “I hope it’s not true.”

Grassley, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, responded to Trump’s abrupt announcement that McGahn would leave in the coming weeks, writing on Twitter that the president “can’t let that happen.”

@realDonaldTrump I hope it’s not true McGahn is leaving WhiteHouse Counsel. U can’t let that happen

— ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) August 29, 2018

Trump wrote in a tweet Wednesday morning that McGahn would leave the White House after Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s expected confirmation.

{mosads}

Grassley’s panel is in charge of Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, which are slated to kick off starting next month. 

“White House Counsel Don McGahn will be leaving his position in the fall, shortly after the confirmation (hopefully) of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court. I have worked with Don for a long time and truly appreciate his service!” Trump wrote earlier Wednesday.

Grassley’s tweet was met with a response minutes later from George Conway, husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway and a frequent critic of the president. He joked that McGahn’s continued service would amount to “excessive .. punishment” under the Constitution’s Eighth Amendment.

“Remember the eighth amendment, senator,” Conway wrote.

remember the eighth amendment, senator

— George Conway (@gtconway3d) August 29, 2018

News of McGahn’s expected resignation comes weeks after The New York Times reported that he had cooperated extensively with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s election interference.

The Times reported that McGahn gave detailed accounts for the special counsel probe, including on the question of whether Trump obstructed justice by firing former FBI Director James Comey.

Trump responded to the report by claiming that he had instructed McGahn to cooperate personally, adding that no obstruction of justice had occurred.

“I allowed White House Counsel Don McGahn, and all other requested members of the White House Staff, to fully cooperate with the Special Counsel,” Trump tweeted earlier this month. “In addition we readily gave over one million pages of documents. Most transparent in history. No Collusion, No Obstruction. Witch Hunt!” he tweeted earlier this month.