Robert Mueller’s first duty is to the truth. His mandate as special counsel is to investigate Russian meddling in the 2016 election. His powers in that role allow him to bring criminal charges if they are warranted. But his most fundamental obligation is to answer a complex question: What happened?

It’s clear that President Donald Trump doesn’t want that question to be answered. A purge of the Justice Department’s upper ranks, perhaps coupled with Mueller’s dismissal, now feels like a matter of when, not if.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters Tuesday afternoon that Trump “certainly believes he has the power” to fire the special counsel, and that “a number of individuals in the legal community, and including at the Department of Justice, said he has the power to do so.” It’s been known that Trump attempted as much in June, but on Tuesday evening The New York Times reported that the president tried again in December. And CNN reported later that night that Trump is also openly weighing the ouster of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein so that he can install someone else to supervise—and curtail—the Russia investigation.

If Trump fires the special counsel or substantively hamstrings his ability to pursue the Russia investigation to whatever end, Mueller won’t be able to fulfill that responsibility to the truth. Fortunately, the former FBI director has an option of last resort: releasing everything he’s discovered to the American public, in one way or another.



This drastic step would not be necessary in a healthier republic. The best check on presidential abuses is Congress, which has its own inherent powers to conduct investigations, subpoena witnesses and documents, and even hold executive-branch officials in contempt or remove them from office. In theory, this would be the best place to which Mueller could turn to ensure his investigation’s findings wouldn’t be buried by the Trump administration and its more pliable officials.