[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 58 (Wednesday, April 11, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2048-S2049]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    AVOIDING A CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS

  Mr. SCHUMER. Now, Mr. President, on the issues of yesterday and last

[[Page S2049]]

night, for months, I have heard my Republican colleagues argue that 
there is no need to pass legislation to protect Special Counsel Mueller 
and the Russian probe from President Trump because they have been 
assured by anonymous White House officials that it will not happen.
  President Trump, in his own words on Monday night, made it plain as 
day that he may be considering firing the special counsel and/or the 
Deputy Attorney General, which would be equally egregious. The White 
House spokeswoman, from the podium, said President Trump believes he 
has the authority to fire the special counsel all by himself, and a 
report in the New York Times said President Trump considered firing 
Mueller as recently as December, in addition to a year ago in June.
  Only an hour ago, the President tweeted that the ``Fake & Corrupt 
Russia Investigation''--his words--was ``headed up by all the Democrat 
loyalists, or people that worked for Obama.''
  Mr. President, will you start telling the truth? Robert Mueller is a 
Republican. Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein is a Republican whom you 
appointed. Christopher Wray, the head of the FBI, is a Republican whom 
you appointed.
  I don't know how long the President can believe people will swallow 
the bold mistruths he spews out day after day after day, but what he 
said--that the people the investigation was being headed up by are all 
Democratic loyalists or people who work for Obama--is patently false, 
and the President should retract it.
  These kinds of remarks make it all too obvious that the President, 
who cares so little for truth, may be considering the firing of the 
special counsel or the Deputy Attorney General. So I would like to 
direct my remarks to my Republican colleagues. I say to my Republican 
colleagues, you can no longer rely on anonymous sources as a reason for 
delay or inaction on legislation to protect Mr. Mueller and avoid a 
constitutional crisis. The evidence is staring us all in the face. We 
cannot ignore the elephant in the room any longer because the 
consequences of the President taking action against Mueller or 
Rosenstein or issuing political pardons is just too dire. As Democrats 
have said, and as many Republicans have said, such action would 
precipitate a constitutional crisis in this country. The President 
doesn't seem to realize it, but I know my Republican colleagues do.
  No person is above the law in this country--not even the President. 
He is not a King. He is the President. If the President were to 
interfere in any way with the chain of command in the Russia 
investigation or clean house at the Justice Department in order to 
install lackeys who will carry out his orders, we would be no better 
than a banana republic. The kinds of things we see happening in other 
parts of the globe would be happening here. In those places, leaders 
use the levers of power to subvert or avoid accountability in all ways. 
President Trump seems to wish he could do just that.
  I want to be crystal clear on this point. If the President were to 
take action against Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein, it would be 
every bit as grave of a mistake as removing Special Counsel Mueller. 
America, as we know it--as we love it--would diminish. I know 
Republicans and Democrats agree on that.
  So why not take the bull by the horns? Why wouldn't we take immediate 
action to potentially prevent a constitutional crisis from coming to 
pass? Why don't we head it off at the pass and move bipartisan 
legislation that has been introduced this morning, through the 
Judiciary Committee--which I am told Senator Grassley is seriously 
considering--on to the floor of the Senate, where I hope Leader 
McConnell will place it. A bipartisan group this morning--Senators 
Graham and Tillis, Booker and Coons--have introduced legislation that 
would help protect the special counsel. Why not pass this legislation 
now and avoid a constitutional crisis? Why not avoid an injury to the 
body of this great country and then try to stitch it up? Why not avoid 
an injury instead of sustaining it and trying to stitch it up? That is 
what we should be doing.
  Let's not wait until it is too late. Let's head the constitutional 
crisis off at the pass by passing the bipartisan legislation introduced 
by Senators Graham, Tillis, Booker, and Coons and take the threat of a 
crisis off the table right now.
  So I urge Senator Grassley to schedule a hearing and markup on this 
bill and to report it out of his committee. He must be sure not to 
water it down with amendments or accept changes that would render it 
useless. I urge Leader McConnell to then take that bill and put it on 
the floor where we can debate and pass it. Surely, something this 
serious deserves the time and attention of U.S. Senators. I dare say, 
if bipartisan legislation like this came to the floor, it would pass by 
a large majority--Members of both parties--and the pressure on the 
House to do the same would be large.
  The rule of law cannot be a partisan issue and should not be a 
partisan issue. We cannot let it become a partisan issue. The Congress 
must clearly, loudly, and with one voice pass legislation to ensure 
that any effort by the President to remove Special Counsel Mueller or 
Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein would be rendered unsuccessful.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. COTTON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Sullivan). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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