What should be done about Mueller’s biased staff?

Are there any liberal Washington D.C. lawyers who don’t despise President Trump. Yeah, I’m sure there are some. I’m just not acquainted with them. In fact, every liberal I know in Washington (lawyer or not) hates or strongly dislikes Trump. Nor are they shy about saying so.

That’s a problem because Robert Mueller’s team is full of liberal lawyers from Washington (or who have spent considerable time here). We know they are liberal because they contributed to the campaigns of Hillary Clinton and/or Barack Obama. Conceivably some contributed to Hillary not because they are liberal but because they can’t stand Trump. If so, that raises the problem of anti-Trump bias even more acutely.

It happens that Andrew Weissmann, Mueller’s right-hand man, revealed his membership in the anti-Trump resistance in an email to Sally Yates, then the lead resister. It also happens that Peter Strzok, then a member Mueller’s team, revealed his anti-Trump animus in email exchanges with his lover Lisa Page. Page was also a member of Mueller’s team and likely shared Strzok’s view of Trump.

Weissmann and Strzok are surely the tip of the iceberg. In a town where many conservatives consider Trump hateful and/or corrupt, we can be certain that anti-Trump bias runs deep among Mueller’s Clinton and Obama supporting staffers.

A biased criminal investigation of anyone is unacceptable. A biased criminal investigation of the U.S. president is intolerable.

How often do we hear that only banana republics investigate political losers (e.g., Mrs. Clinton)? I’m pretty sure I’ve said it myself.

When necessary, we investigate political winners because it’s important to ensure that those who hold office don’t abuse the public trust. But to conduct ideologically biased investigations of political winners that place them in jeopardy of being removed from office is most assuredly the stuff of banana republics.

What to do? I concur with a friend who says that Rod Rosenstein should direct Mueller to fire everyone on his staff who has made a political contribution or otherwise could be reasonably thought to be a partisan. If Mueller refuses, as he certainly would, Rosenstein should fire Mueller.

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