Former CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather says the investigation into any ties between President Trump's campaign and Russia has the potential to be more important than the Watergate scandal, which eventually led to President Richard Nixon's resignation.

“In size and scope, this has the potential to be worse than Watergate,” Rather said on “CNN Tonight with Don Lemon.”

Rather said the naming of a special counselor to oversee the investigation was a key development.

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“This is why today is so important,” Rather said. “This is the day that we came to realize in the breadth and depth of this investigation, it’s as least as important as Watergate, if not more so.”

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein named former FBI Director Robert Mueller as a special counsel to oversee the investigation on Wednesday. The decision quickly won bipartisan praise from lawmakers in Washington, who hailed the decision as a positive development for the investigation.

Rather has been a frequent critic of Trump since he took office, recently saying the president has a “willful disregard for the rule of law.” He’s also criticized the media’s coverage of Trump’s presidency, hitting journalists who called Trump “presidential” after the missile strike on a Syrian airfield in April.