The former acting attorney gives us insight into the role of the special investigation. This is KPBS Midday Edition. He is going to take over the investigation. I read the reports that the Deputy Attorney General that appointed him is putting him in charge of the investigation. He will sort of shepherd the agents working the streets and he is going to leave that investigation. People are still calling this position a special prosecutor. How different is a special counsel from a special prosecutor. That's different and independent counsel is in effect an attorney general in himself or herself and they can decide to take the investigation to the left or right or to the middle. We ended up with a different investigation with Monica Lewinsky. He's got a mission and has some independence. If you look carefully at the press release he said has a measure of independence which is true but he still has to report to the DAG and I think the Deputy Attorney General could still confine his investigation if he decides to go off on a frolic or detour that the DAG does not think he should go down. The president has the authority to fire the special counsel. Yes he does. As he does anybody else in the Department of Justice. I think that whoever comes into that spot. He will have a lot of grief and a lot of people claim that and but I think he is bulletproof is bulletproof. Even this present cannot possibly credibly fire him or remove him. Having said that the first tweet was that it is a witchhunt. I do not know what that says about the agenda that it instills that will get the support that is very important. He needs the prosecutors who are going to help him do it. He needs the agents that are going to help them do it. The president put impediments and special counsel's way as this investigation goes on. There is executive privilege and immunity questions. When you subpoena documents from the White House it is much more difficult because there are certain privileges. Overnighted the campaign financing investigation back in 1998 of Clinton-Gore we had to jump through many hoops to get simple business records for the White House. Like the people that were in and out and were essential to our investigation. They can put up roadblocks and you have to litigate those things and it all takes time. With the Council and -- coordinate with the investigations in Congress. Yes and no. I will be required to keep them apprised of what is going on. That is the environment that he is living in and he will not let them direct or tell him what to do or what not to do but he will keep them apprised so you can keep them at bay. He does not want them interfering with his investigation. He does not want somebody to get immunity from the House of Representatives or the Senate unless he has decided that person to get immunity. That could negatively impact the investigation. San Diego Republican Congressman Darrell I sent released a statement about the appointment which said in part I have faith that Robert will provide the independence necessary to be sure this investigation is conducted with the trust and confidence of the American people. Special counsel have to rip his findings to the American people? An interesting question. He has to report his findings to the DAG for sure and if he decides to file charges the Deputy Attorney General have to approve those charges. There is no requirement that he report regularly or even at all to the American people %. But he will because he will see where the investigation goes. If he conducts a grand jury investigation those witnesses will be free under our law to speak about what happens in the grand jury. Bob and his lawyers are not free to talk about that because of grand jury secrecy but the witnesses will talking he will get an idea of what is going on and where they are going because how long could the investigation last. That is a great question. It could last a year or two years. Knowing Mueller and how efficient he is a think this is probably six months before we really see where it is going and then I think a year at the outside even as good as he is it will take him a year. Witnesses are not going to Russian to testify. They will want immunity and he will get some [Indiscernible]. I've heard them to say that it is time for the White House staff to lawyer up. Why would that be? Is a former prosecutor I would advise them not to lawyer because it's easier to get information out of them. The statement that they should lawyer up is because they are witnesses to what happened what -- whether it is at the time that it happened or after-the-fact they are going to be witnesses. That will all be germane to ascertain intent. Things that are not tangible and things that you have to ask people what happened when. What did you think. What did he say what did she say. That all goes to intents. They will be witnesses. I do not know if there will be critical witnesses but the people that are involved in the campaign and the principles who allegedly talk to Russian officials will be really in the crosshairs. Having been a federal prosecutor where would you begin in this investigation. That will be pops first decision is how to staff and secondly where do I go. I think having worked a little bit with Bob and knowing how he works he will keep it more narrow the must now. Keep it focused and will pick maybe three or four areas to drill down on and people to go after. I do not mean criminally prosecute the to get their testimony whether he hast immunized them are not that's what he has to start. He will start with the documents. He will have people looking at the documents long and hard the with the emails say and the tweets say and the traffic and then he will start talking to some witnesses. I have been speaking with the former acting US attorney for the Southern District of California. Thank you Thank you.
Update: 1:40 p.m.
President Donald Trump responded with a direct "no, no" to a question about whether he asked former FBI Director James Comey to shelve an investigation into his former national security adviser.
Trump also was questioned Thursday over revelations that he had shared secrets with the Russians. He denied this as well.
Comey associates this week revealed the existence of a memo Comey wrote after his Feb. 14 meeting with Trump in which he says the president asked him to shut down the FBI investigation into ousted National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
Trump sent Comey a letter last week abruptly firing him.
Update: 1:25 p.m.
President Donald Trump said that the appointment of a special counsel for the ongoing investigation into his campaign's ties to Russia "divides the country."
Trump is reacting to the appointment of former FBI Director Robert Mueller to lead the investigation after he fired FBI Director James Comey.
Trump said Thursday that he respects "the entire thing" but said that he personally has no ties to Russia.
He reiterated his earlier comments that the investigation is a "witch hunt."
Trump says, "we want to bring this country of ours together."
Trump was speaking in a joint press conference with Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos.
Read original story below:
President Donald Trump lashed out at the appointment of a special counsel to investigate allegations that his campaign collaborated with Russia to sway the 2016 election, tweeting Thursday that it is "the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history!"
The Justice Department on Wednesday appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller to lead the investigation. Mueller will have sweeping powers and the authority to prosecute any crimes he uncovers.
The surprise announcement to hand the probe over to Mueller, a lawman with deep bipartisan respect, was a striking shift for Trump's Justice Department, which had resisted increasingly loud calls from Democrats for an outside prosecutor. It immediately escalated the legal stakes - and the potential political damage - for a president who has tried to dismiss the matter as partisan witch hunt and a "hoax."
In another Twitter post Thursday, Trump said: "With all of the illegal acts that took place in the Clinton campaign & Obama Administration, there was never a special councel (sic) appointed!" He did not provide examples or evidence of any alleged "illegal acts."
The announcement, the latest in the shock-a-day Washington saga, was made by deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. The White House counsel's office was alerted only after the order appointing Mueller was signed, said a senior White House official, who was not authorized to speak publicly by name and commented only on condition of anonymity.
In a written statement, Trump insisted anew there were no nefarious ties between his campaign and Russia.
"A thorough investigation will confirm what we already know - there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity," he declared. "I look forward to this matter concluding quickly."
Mueller's broad mandate gives him not only oversight of the Russia probe, but also "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation." That would surely include Trump's firing last week of FBI Director James Comey.
Mueller, a former federal prosecutor at the Justice Department, was confirmed as FBI director days before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that would ultimately shape his tenure. The FBI's counterterror mission was elevated in those years, as the U.S. intelligence agencies adjusted to better position America to prevent another attack of such magnitude. He was so valued that President Barack Obama asked him to stay on two years longer than his 10-year term.
Comey succeeded him, appointed by Obama.
Mueller was appointed Wednesday by Rosenstein, who had faced criticism as the author of a memo that preceded Comey's firing. Rosenstein said the appointment was "necessary in order for the American people to have full confidence in the outcome."
Republicans have largely stood behind Trump in the first months of his presidency as the FBI and congressional investigations into Russia's election meddling intensified. But GOP lawmakers have grown increasingly anxious since Trump fired Comey, who had been leading the bureau's probe - and after Comey associates said he had notes from a meeting in which Trump asked him to shut down the investigation into the Russia ties of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
First reactions from Congress were mainly positive.
House Speaker Paul Ryan said the appointment was consistent with his goal of ensuring that "thorough and independent investigations are allowed to follow the facts wherever they may lead."
Republican Jason Chaffetz of Utah, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Mueller was a "great selection. Impeccable credentials. Should be widely accepted."
And not a moment too soon, Democrats said.
"I believe Mueller will be independent, he will be thorough and he will be fair and he's not going to be easily swayed," said Elijah Cummings of Maryland, top Democrat on the oversight panel. Cummings has vigorously urged such an appointment, suggesting it could lead to accusations of obstruction of justice.
In the 1990s, Democrats complained that independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who investigated President Bill Clinton, overstepped his authority.
The latest political storm, coupled with the still-potent fallout from Trump's recent disclosure of classified information to Russian diplomats at the White House, has overshadowed all else in the capital and beyond. Stocks fell sharply on Wall Street Wednesday as investors worried the latest turmoil in Washington could hinder Trump's pro-business agenda
Trump has repeatedly slammed the FBI and congressional investigations as a "hoax" and blamed disgruntled officials at intelligence agencies for leaking information related to the probes. During a commencement address Wednesday at the Coast Guard Academy, he complained bitterly about criticism he's faced.
"No politician in history, and I say this with great surety, has been treated worse or more unfairly," he said. "You can't let the critics and the naysayers get in the way of your dreams. ... I guess that's why we won. Adversity makes you stronger. Don't give in, don't back down. ... And the more righteous your fight, the more opposition that you will face."
No less a commentator than Russia's Vladimir Putin called the dramatic charges swirling around Trump evidence of "political schizophrenia spreading in the U.S." He offered to furnish a "record" of the Trump-diplomats meeting in the Oval Office if the White House desired it.
There was no word on what that record might entail, a question many were likely to raise in light of Trump's recent warning to Comey that he had "better hope" there were no tapes of a discussion they'd had.
The White House has disputed Comey's account of his February conversation with Trump concerning Flynn but has not offered specifics. Several congressional Republicans said Wednesday that if Trump did suggest that Comey "let this go" regarding Flynn's Russian contacts, it was probably just a joke, light banter.
Both of the explosive revelations - that the president pressed his FBI director to drop a federal investigation before later firing him, and that he disclosed classified information to senior Russian officials - came from anonymous sources, and the White House was quick to denounce the leaks and deny any impropriety. Trump aides said he never tried to squelch the Flynn investigation nor made inappropriate disclosures to the Russians.
On Capitol Hill, Comey was clearly the man in demand, with three committees working to seat him at their witness tables soon, two in the Senate and one in the House.
The Senate intelligence committee also asked acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe to turn over any notes Comey might have made regarding discussions he had with White House or Justice Department officials about Russia's efforts to influence the election.
McCabe had other matters on his mind, too. He was one of four potential candidates to lead the FBI that Trump was interviewing. The others were former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating and Richard McFeely, a former top FBI official.
Trump is preparing to leave town Friday on his first foreign trip, and aides have been hopeful the journey will be a chance for the administration to get back on track after weeks of chaos and distractions.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speculated Trump was probably happy to get out of town - "and a lot of us are glad he's leaving for a few days."
His advice to the president: "Stay disciplined, stay focused and deliver on the world stage."
Separately, McClatchy News Service reported Wednesday that before Trump took office, Flynn had blocked an Obama administration military plan, opposed by Turkey, against the Islamic State group. Unknown to the Obama administration, Flynn had been paid more than $500,000 to advocate for Turkey's interests.
McClatchy says Flynn declined to OK a request from Obama officials to approve a military operation involving the IS stronghold of Raqqa, effectively delaying the operation. The Trump team had been asked since the operation was likely to be carried out after Trump took office. Turkey has long opposed U.S. forces working with Kurdish forces.
The plan was eventually approved by the Trump administration, but not until after Flynn had been fired.
