[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 59 (Thursday, April 12, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2086-S2087]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Russia Investigation

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, over the past 2 weeks, we have seen 
increasingly worrisome signs that President Trump is seriously 
considering firing the special counsel in charge of the investigation 
into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election. Equally troubling is the 
possibility of the President firing the Deputy Attorney General who 
oversees that investigation in order to install someone who would 
dismiss Mr. Mueller or otherwise impede or shut down the investigation.
  Let me be clear. Firing Mr. Rosenstein would be as great an injury to 
our democracy as firing Mr. Mueller. Mr. Rosenstein, by all accounts, 
since being appointed by President Trump, has followed the letter of 
the law. There is no conduct the President or anyone else can point to 
that would suggest Mr. Rosenstein went beyond DOJ regulations or 
otherwise abused his position. He has dutifully done his job. When he 
approved Mr. Mueller's referral to the U.S. attorney in the Southern 
District, it was simply because he was provided sufficient evidence 
that Mr. Mueller had uncovered a potential crime. It doesn't matter if 
it upsets President Trump; Mr. Rosenstein was following the facts and 
the law. It is the obligation of a Justice Department official when he 
or she sees evidence of a crime to pursue it without fear, without 
favor. That is what Rosenstein was doing, and somehow President Trump 
doesn't grasp the rudiments of our democracy and our system of laws.
  Instead, President Trump seems to have the view that the Justice 
Department exists to protect his interests and

[[Page S2087]]

prosecute his enemies. But in the long history of our grand, wonderful 
country--God's noble experiment, as the Founding Fathers called it, and 
it still is today--that has never been what the Justice Department has 
stood for. It is an independent Federal agency tasked with following 
the law wherever it leads, free of considerations of politics or power. 
Mr. Rosenstein is acting in line with that long and great tradition, 
and it is no reason--none at all--for the President to fire him.
  My friends on the other side of the aisle know, just as well as we 
do, that firing Mr. Rosenstein or Mr. Mueller would precipitate a 
constitutional crisis. Our constitutional order is built upon a bedrock 
faith in the rule of law, of equality under the law. No person--not 
even the President--can subvert that principle for his or her political 
interests or needs.
  Let me remind everyone that the investigation is not a witch hunt, as 
the President keeps tweeting it is. It has resulted in multiple 
indictments and guilty pleas. By definition, that is not a witch hunt. 
The Trump administration itself leveled sanctions against Russians 
based on information obtained as a result of the Russia probe. So if 
the President's own administration, separate from Mueller, leveled 
sanctions against the Russians using information that Mueller has 
gotten, how can he then proceed to call it a witch hunt? It just 
doesn't add up.
  The investigation concerns the national security of the United 
States. If the President were to try to shut it down for personal, 
political reasons, there is no doubt we would face a constitutional 
crisis.
  So let's make this simple. The consequences of firing Mr. Rosenstein, 
Mr. Mueller, or issuing pardons would be dire for our democracy. We 
have clear evidence from the President himself that each of those 
things is a possibility. President Trump basically mused about it on 
national television.
  Every Democrat and every Republican, regardless of politics, party, 
or ideology, should stand up and say that what the President is 
considering is not only wrong but a real threat to the constitutional 
order of this government. Once they admit that, what rational person 
would not want to take steps to prevent a constitutional crisis from 
happening now, before the President acts precipitously and against the 
whole meaning of our democracy? We, in Congress, have the power to 
prevent that constitutional crisis and to do it right away. We have the 
power to protect the special counsel's investigation. Only the Deputy 
Attorney General can fire the special counsel and only for cause.
  A bipartisan group of Senators, including Senators Graham and Tillis 
on the Republican side and Booker and Coons on the Democratic side, 
have come up with legislation that would allow the special counsel to 
appeal a firing to a panel of independent judges under an expedited 
procedure to determine if Mr. Mueller were fired for cause. If he 
weren't fired for cause, the special counsel would be reinstituted 
immediately. That makes eminent sense. The bipartisan legislation would 
simply provide a legal avenue to reinforce existing procedures and 
assure that the grand tradition of rule of law is maintained.
  Chairman Grassley and Ranking Member Feinstein have agreed to hold a 
hearing and mark up this legislation. I applaud them both for it and 
urge the members of the Judiciary Committee to approve this legislation 
without watering it down or weakening it with amendments. We should 
pass it out of committee. Leader McConnell should bring it to the floor 
of the Senate quickly, where I believe it would pass with a very large 
majority, and we should pressure our colleagues in the House to do the 
same. It is my view that if the bill came to the floor and passed the 
Senate by a significant majority, the House would follow because the 
pressure would be enormous.
  The rule of law, quite simply, should not be a partisan issue. It 
must not be a partisan issue. We cannot ever let it become a partisan 
issue. The last time it was at risk under President Nixon's 
administration, Republicans stepped up to the plate, and they went down 
in history as very admirable. I hope they will do it again. The 
Congress should speak loudly and soon by passing this legislation in 
both Chambers.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask to continue my remarks for a few 
minutes on another subject.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader is recognized.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I apologize to my colleague from 
Delaware.