No matter the mistakes made by Director Comey, the timing of his firing suggests that President Trump is trying to improperly influence or block the ongoing FBI investigation into his campaign’s collusion with Russia.

It defies logic that President Trump, who personally led chants of “lock her up” at campaign rallies, would suddenly have a change of heart and believe Clinton was treated unfairly.

Two things need to happen. First, there must be a special prosecutor now. If the president continues to oppose the appointment of an independent prosecutor, that would confirm America’s worst fears about the president’s real motivation for firing Comey.

Second, the Senate must insist that Comey’s replacement be a person of unquestioned independence and integrity, not a partisan lackey.

The Senate was created by our founders to be the guardian of democratic norms. This is the moment where we must rise to meet that challenge.

Thank you for reading,

Chris Murphy
U.S. Senator, Connecticut

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