Senators on both side of the aisle introduced legislation Thursday which would protect the special counsel from meddling by President Donald Trump.
Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Chris Coons, D-Del., wrote the bill to create a judicial review should a president try to remove a special counsel.
The measure would spell out who can fire a special counsel and make them retroactive to this year’s appointment of Robert Mueller.
Mueller is currently the special counsel spearheading the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election — including dealings with Trump campaign figures.
If Mueller or any future special counsel were to be fired, the decision could be challenged before a special panel of three federal judges.
“It is critical that special counsels have the independence and resources they need to lead investigations,” said Sen. Tillis. “A back-end judicial review process to prevent unmerited removals of special counsels not only helps to ensure their investigatory independence, but also reaffirms our nation’s system of check and balances.”
