Two GOP senators expressed dismay at reports that the president told the top White House lawyer to order Justice Department officials to fire special counsel Robert Mueller.

Sen. Lindsay Graham and three Democratic senators introduced legislation last August that would protect special counsels.

The likelihood that such a bill would become law has seemed remote.



WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress should take a new look at proposed legislation to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his probe of the Trump campaign's ties with Russia after President Donald Trump's attempt to fire him last year, two Republican senators said on Sunday.

In separate television interviews, Senators Susan Collins and Lindsey Graham expressed dismay at reports that the Republican president had told the top White House lawyer to order U.S. Justice Department officials to fire Mueller.

"I've got legislation protecting Mr. Mueller, and I'd be glad to pass it tomorrow," Graham told ABC News' "This Week."

On CNN's "State of the Union," Collins said: "It certainly wouldn’t hurt to put that extra safeguard in place, given the latest stories."

Tensions over Mueller's probe are hovering over Trump's year-old presidency as he prepares to give his first State of the Union Address on Tuesday.

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina introduced a bill to protect special counsels from being fired. Susan Walsh/AP

The New York Times reported on Thursday that Trump ordered White House counsel Donald McGahn to fire Mueller in June but backed down after McGahn threatened to resign rather than carry out the order.

A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that McGahn was "fed up" after Trump's order. He did not issue an ultimatum directly to the president but told then-White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and then-Chief Strategist Steve Bannon that he wanted to quit, the source said.

Graham and three Democratic senators introduced legislation last August that would protect special counsels, including Mueller, by requiring that a panel of federal judges review any action to remove them.

The likelihood that such a bill would become law has seemed remote, however. Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have shown little enthusiasm for the idea.

Republicans hold the majority in both the House and the Senate.

Mueller is investigating whether Trump associates and the Kremlin colluded during the 2016 presidential election. Russia denies such collusion, and Trump frequently denounces the probe as a "witch hunt."

Both Collins and Graham said they saw no sign that Trump is currently trying to fire Mueller.

"I think what happened here is the president had a bad idea," Collins said. "He talked with his counsel, who explained to an angry and frustrated president why it was a bad idea."

Graham said: "It's pretty clear to me everyone in the White House knows it'd be the end of President Trump's presidency if he tried to fire Mr. Mueller."

Watch a clip of Graham's remarks below: