EDITOR’S NOTE: The final two episodes of “Standoff: The FBI, Power, and Paranoia” air Sunday, March 29, at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Episodes will be available to stream on demand the next day for subscribers of CNN’s streaming offering.
The recent death of Robert Mueller prompted a swift outpouring of bipartisan condolences for the once-wounded war hero, senior Justice Department leader and sixth director of the FBI.
But at the White House: elation.
“Good, I’m glad he’s dead,” President Donald Trump wrote on social media about the former special counsel who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election. “He can no longer hurt innocent people!”
While some past presidents have privately resented FBI directors – a topic explored in the new CNN Original documentary series “Standoff: The FBI, Power, and Paranoia” – Trump’s comments rank as the most openly caustic.
The celebration of Mueller’s death by Trump was met with scorn inside the FBI and other law enforcement agencies, with numerous rank-and-file sources privately slamming the comments.
Now headed by the fierce Trump political loyalist Kash Patel, the FBI has yet to issue a public statement on Mueller’s passing.
The president’s antipathy for Mueller was on full display throughout the course of the Russia investigation, with Mueller – whose tenure as FBI director ended well before Trump took office – brought out of retirement by Trump’s own Justice Department to serve as special counsel.
According to the special counsel’s findings, Trump “slumped back in his chair” upon hearing the news Mueller had been appointed and said, “Oh my God. This is terrible. This is the end of my presidency. I’m fucked.”
During the investigation, the president repeatedly hurled unfounded allegations accusing Mueller, a Republican, of trying to topple his administration. In the end, the special counsel’s inquiry would lead to prison time for multiple Trump associates convicted of various federal crimes, although none were charged with colluding with Moscow.
And while Trump has falsely claimed Mueller “exonerated” him, the special counsel did not make a decision on holding Trump accountable for possible crimes, instead punting on the topic in adherence to a longtime DOJ policy that dictates a sitting president cannot be prosecuted.
Robert Mueller testifies before the House Judiciary Committee in July 2019 about his report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. – Jonathan Ernst/Pool/Getty Images
‘The only choice is to resign’
As the new CNN documentary “Standoff” outlines through stories of the fragile and high-risk relationships between FBI directors past and the presidents they served, the clash with Trump was not the first time Mueller nor his predecessors found themselves at odds with the White House.
Back-to-back episodes airing Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on CNN feature Mueller’s frenetic tenure under George W. Bush in the wake of 9/11, as well as former FBI director Louis Freeh’s turbulent relationship with Bill Clinton.
Bush and Mueller worked closely as US authorities feverishly sought to stop the next possible terrorist attack. But their partnership would come to a head amid a dramatic standoff between DOJ and the White House over concerns about the legality of Bush’s sweeping surveillance program, with Mueller and other senior officials threatening to resign en masse.
“Mueller sees this, actually, as a very easy choice,” historian Garrett Graff said in an interview for the series. “He believes that if he is being asked to do something unconstitutional, the only choice is to resign.”
The White House relented, changing the scope of the surveillance program to Mueller’s liking, and he continued serving as FBI director long into the administration of Barack Obama.
Clinton heralded his pick of Freeh as FBI director in 1993 – a decision the president would regret as the bureau soon found itself conducting a torrent of investigations into Clinton world, including business dealings, campaign contributions and a sexual relationship with a White House intern.
“Bill Clinton comes to hate his director of the FBI,” said political historian Leah Wright Rigueuer. “And the feeling is mutual.”
Louis Freeh, President Bill Clinton’s choice to head the FBI, speaks next to the president on July 20, 1993, in the Rose Garden of the White House. – Ron Edmonds/AP/File
‘Those capabilities can be devastating’
In Trump’s second term, confrontation between the White House and FBI might as well be ancient history: The political leaders he has installed atop federal law enforcement have apparently proven willing to do the president’s bidding despite criticisms of abuse of power.
But as law enforcement experts warn in “Standoff,” danger may lie ahead with the FBI’s fierce independence now all but obliterated.
“Outside of current issues involving national security concerns, the president of the United States should have little or nothing to do with the FBI,” said CNN Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst John Miller, who previously served as an FBI assistant director.
“The FBI has a lot of power,” said former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. “And put to the wrong ends, those capabilities can be devastating.”
Josh Campbell is a CNN Senior Correspondent and former special agent who worked for three FBI directors, including Robert Mueller.
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