(WASHINGTON, DC) The Justice Department has appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as a special counsel to oversee a federal investigation into potential coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election.
The appointment Wednesday comes amid a growing Democratic outcry for someone outside the Justice Department to handle the politically charged investigation.
It follows the revelation Tuesday that fired FBI Director James Comey wrote in a memo that Trump had asked him to end an investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
House Republicans have mixed reactions to the surprise announcement that the Justice Department has appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as a special counsel to oversee a federal investigation into possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign in 2016.
Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz of Utah said late Wednesday that Mueller is a “great selection. Impeccable credentials. Should be widely accepted.”
But Rep. Peter King of New York is expressing concern over the wide purview special prosecutors have. King says, “I’m worried with all special counsels because there’s no control over them and they can abuse their power.”
In the 1990s, Democrats insisted that independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who investigated former President Bill Clinton, overstepped his authority.
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