On Wednesday, Sen. Jeff Flake pushed for a floor vote on legislation protecting Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. In April, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the bill with four Republicans supporting the measure. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked a vote.
This is profound dereliction of duty at a potential moment of crisis.
One day after the midterm elections, Trump fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had rightly recused himself from the Mueller investigation, installing longtime Mueller critic Matt Whitaker as acting AG without Senate confirmation. Unconstitutional? Probably.
Trump ranted to The Daily Caller that the probe "should have never been had. It's something that should have never been brought. It's an illegal investigation." On Thursday, he tweeted darkly, that "The inner workings of the Mueller investigation are a total mess" and called investigators "Democrat thugs" out to "ruin lives."
In the face of McConnell's obstructionism, Flake vowed that he won't support any Trump judicial nominees until his bill gets a vote. Good for him. Bad for Sens. Chuck Grassley, Lindsey Graham and Tom Tillis _ all of whom voted for the bill in committee, and for anyone else who defends the special counsel with empty words.
