President Donald Trump on Sunday railed against both the Russia investigation and the two men dispatched from the upper ranks of the FBI, accusing the Special Counsel of partisanship and speculating on "fake memos" kept by Andrew McCabe and James Comey.
In an early morning tirade on Twitter, Trump accused Robert Mueller — a Republican with a reputation for independence who's held appointed positions under both Democratic and GOP presidents — of hiring "hardened Democrats" to probe alleged ties between his 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.
Trump's tweetstorm came in the wake of his personal lawyer, John Dowd, calling for an end to the Russia investigation after the firing of McCabe, who at one point was the acting director of the FBI. He was fired abruptly late Friday by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and the departure has done little to quell the controversy engulfing the bureau.
Media reports suggest that McCabe kept a secret file of notes on his discussions with Trump, similar to documents Comey is said to have taken during his tenure. McCabe reportedly has turned over those memos to Mueller as part of his investigation, but on Sunday Trump dismissed the notion of either McCabe or Comey having anything incriminating, calling them "fake memos."
'Childish, defamatory and disgusting'
Michael Bromwich, a former federal prosecutor representing McCabe, lashed out at the president on Twitter, accusing Trump of "corrupting the entire process" that led to McCabe's ouster, and calling his accusations "disgusting."
Trump and his supporters have frequently denounced both the Mueller probe and the FBI as part of a "deep state" witch hunt designed to undermine his presidency.
According to a story published on Sunday in The New York Times, Mueller has sent questions to the president's legal team as part of discussions that may lead to an interview with Trump himself. The special counsel has already provided a list of questions to the White House, The Times noted.