Aides of Donald Trump tried to tone down the US president’s remarks on Wednesday, when he told his attorney general to end the high-profile investigation into alleged Russian election.
In a series of tweets, Trump decried the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller as “a disgrace.”
“This is a terrible situation and Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further,” Trump said.
Aides rushed to limit the damage, insisting he was not issuing an order as Session’s boss.
“It’s not an order, it’s the president’s opinion,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters, adding that Trump wants the probe to “come to an end.”
His lawyer Rudy Giuliani added: “He used a medium he uses for opinions, Twitter. One of the good things about using that, he’s established a clear sort of practice now that he expresses his opinions on Twitter.
“He used the word ‘should,’ he didn’t use the word ‘must.'”
The president — along with allies in conservative media — has launched a long PR campaign against the Mueller probe, which he claims is biased and pursuing erroneous claims of collusion between his campaign team and Moscow.
“Russian Collusion with the Trump Campaign, one of the most successful in history, is a TOTAL HOAX,” the president said Wednesday.
Mueller — a respected former FBI director — is investigating whether the Trump campaign aided or abetted an alleged attempt by Russia to sway the 2016 presidential election, or tried to cover up the case.
He has so far lodged dozens of indictments, including those of suspected Russian hackers, and secured guilty pleas from at least three Trump aides charged with conspiracy and lying to investigators.
Source: AFP
