Trump Responds To Former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe's 60 Minutes Interview

President Trump eviscerated former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe on TwitterThursday, following a revealing . McCabe told CBS News' Scott Pelley he launched obstruction of justice and counterintelligence investigations involving the president immediately after Mr. Trump fired former FBI Director James Comey and Justice Department officials discussed the constitutional procedures for removing a sitting president. 

McCabe, in his first television interview since he was fired, told 60 Minutes' Scott Pelley he wanted to make sure there was documentation for those investigations so they couldn't easily be quashed without raising red flags. 

"I was very concerned that I was able to put the Russia case on absolutely solid ground, in an indelible fashion," McCabe said in the interview. "That were I removed quickly, or reassigned or fired, that the case could not be closed or vanish in the night without a trace." 

Hours after part of the interview aired, Mr. Trump took to Twitter to blast McCabe, who was fired by now-former Attorney General Jeff Sessions amid a Justice Department inspector general report that heavily criticized McCabe. 

"Disgraced FBI Acting Director Andrew McCabe pretends to be a 'poor little Angel' when in fact he was a big part of the Crooked Hillary Scandal & the Russia Hoax - a puppet for Leakin' James Comey. I.G. report on McCabe was devastating," the president tweeted." Part of "insurance policy" in case I won. ... Many of the top FBI brass were fired, forced to leave, or left. McCabe's wife received BIG DOLLARS from Clinton people for her campaign - he gave Hillary a pass. McCabe is a disgrace to the FBI and a disgrace to our Country. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders also weighed in.

"Andrew McCabe was fired in total disgrace from the FBI because he lied to investigators on multiple occasions, including under oath. His selfish and destructive agenda drove him to open a completely baseless investigation into the president," Sanders said in a statement. "His actions were so shameful that he was referred to federal prosecutors. Andrew McCabe has no credibility and is an embarrassment to the men and women of the FBI and our great country." 

Sen. Lindsey Graham, a staunch ally of the president, released a statement in response to the interview saying that McCabe needed to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which Graham is the chairman.

"After Mr. McCabe's 60 Minutes interview, it is imperative that he, and others, come before the Senate Judiciary Committee to fully explain how and why a FISA warrant was issued against Carter Page and answer questions about what appears to be, now more than ever, bias against President Trump," said Graham.

McCabe also confirmed that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein offered to wear a wire for conversations with the president — a topic that came up more the once and was a serious offer, not a joke, McCabe suggested. Pelley said that McCabe also told him that officials discussed whether to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Mr. Trump from office.

"There were meetings at the Justice Department at which it was discussed whether the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet could be brought together to remove the president of the United States under the 25th Amendment," Pelley said. "These were the eight days from Comey's firing to the point that Robert Mueller was appointed special counsel. And the highest levels of American law enforcement were trying to figure out what do with the president."  

While the president made no mention of Rosenstein in his tweet, the president has criticized Rosenstein in the past, and it's unclear if McCabe's comments might resurface that frustration. 

The full 60 Minutes interview will air Sunday night at 7 p.m.

First published on February 14, 2019

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