“What, are you surprised?”
A white-hatted President Trump told a group of reporters Sunday evening that he was not considering firing Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
The president made the remarks in response to shouted questions from journalists on the White House lawn. He had just returned from a weekend at Camp David.
The president criticized Mueller’s acquisition of thousands of Trump administration transition emails, saying “my people are very upset about it.” He said he doubted that there was anything of interest in the messages, and that there was “no collusion,” a claim he has made many times.
After he said he was not considering dismissing Mueller, he added, “What, are you surprised?”
Such a reaction would be forgivable, since momentum has appeared to be gathering for Trump to take action against the former FBI director, who has been investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election and the Trump campaign’s possible role in it.
Several GOP lawmakers have attacked Mueller’s integrity in recent days. Trump’s lawyers appear to be questioning whether he is breaking the law in the course of his investigation. And Fox News, one of the president’s primary sources of information, has mounted a ferocious anti-Mueller campaign.
Of course, Trump is not known for his consistency of viewpoint. And he seems to believe sincerely that Mueller’s investigation will wrap up by the end of the year, with the president completely exonerated. If that doesn’t happen, his thoughts on the matter may well shift.
