Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., on Tuesday called for the Senate Judiciary Committee to call up his bill to protect special counsel Robert Mueller amid new fears that President Trump might fire him.
“I do think it’s a bill worth of a markup in judiciary and sending it to the floor,” Tillis told reporters.
“Yeah,” Tillis added when asked if he wants the bill to move now, “As I did then and I would if Clinton were in office and we were having the same discussion only with a different sort of flair to it.”
The legislation, introduced by Tillis and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., would give Mueller and future special counsels the ability to contest their firing after the fact. It is one of two bills introduced on this issue. Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., have proposed another version.
On Monday, Trump was asked why he doesn’t fire Mueller, after the office of his personal lawyer was raided under Mueller’s direction, and seemed to leave the door open.
“Well, I think it’s a disgrace what’s going on. We’ll see what happens,” Trump said. “Many people have said you should fire him. Again, they found nothing. And in finding nothing, that’s a big statement.”
Tillis said special counsels need to be protected from that sort of decision.
“I think it’s a good bill that’s going to have enduring value beyond this presidency,” Tillis said. “I think the president’s frustrated. I may be if I was in the same position.”
Tillis said that the four senators have discussed merging the two bills into a final product. “We’re trying to work it out,” Tillis said.
Senate Republicans have made near-universal calls for the president to not fire Mueller. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Trump would be committing political “suicide” if he did so.
