US Congress will vote on bill to protect Robert Mueller from being fired by Donald Trump – if the bill gets that far

Legislation designed to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller from a sudden firing by US President Donald Trump is expected to get a committee vote before the end of the month, but its path forward is difficult, as partisan disagreements over the bill are already surfacing.

The legislation was introduced this week as Trump escalated his criticism of the special counsel, and the committee is expected to vote on the legislation on April 26, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (Republican, Iowa) said on Thursday.

Grassley has not endorsed the bill, and said he has concerns that it is unconstitutional. But he said at an unrelated committee hearing that he believes the full committee should vote on it.

The legislation was introduced by Republicans Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democrats Chris Coons of Delaware and Cory Booker of New Jersey – who are all members of the Judiciary panel.

It would write into law the existing Justice Department regulations that say a special counsel can only be fired for good cause and by a senior Justice Department official. It would also give any special counsel a 10-day window to seek expedited judicial review of a firing.

The bill’s bipartisan introduction signals escalating worries in Congress as Trump has fumed about an FBI raid of the office of his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and called Mueller’s Russia investigation “an attack on our country.”