A bill to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller from being fired without cause won bipartisan support from the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The measure was approved by the panel 14-7 on Thursday even though Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, has said it won’t get a vote on the Senate floor.
Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, rejected McConnell’s stance on the legislation. "This bill should be considered by the full Senate," Grassley said. "We took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Under the bill, if special counsels are fired, they can appeal the action to a federal court, which could overrule the dismissal for lacking good cause. The legislation also calls for reports to Congress on special counsels’ activities.
Egged on by some of his strongest supporters, President Donald Trump has taken an increasingly combative posture toward Mueller’s investigation since FBI agents raided the home and office of his lawyer Michael Cohen earlier this month. Trump said last week that Mueller and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees Mueller, “are still here” despite talk that he would fire them over the probe into Russian tampering with the 2016 election.
Grassley said role of the Congress is to "effectively check the other branches" and that the bill fulfills that responsibility.
Some lawmakers have suggested that Trump could face impeachment if he dismisses Mueller. Grassley said oversight will help Congress "consider whether to resort to the extreme remedy of impeachment."
Some Republicans said the bill is unconstitutional because it gives prosecutors too much power. Grassley said, "It’s possible the bill goes too far" and that he understands the constitutional objections.
Some senators have said advancing the measure could become an insurance policy -- and perhaps the starting point for a congressional response -- if Trump defies their advice and acts to fire Mueller.
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