GOP Lawmaker Criticizes Trump’s Reaction to Robert Mueller’s Death

Representative Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, called President Donald Trump’s response celebrating the death of former FBI Director Robert Mueller 'clearly wrong and unchristian' in a text message to Politico on Saturday.

“Representative Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, called President Donald Trump’s response celebrating the death of former FBI Director Robert Mueller “clearly wrong and unchristian” in a text message to Politico on Saturday”

Newsweek

Mueller, the former FBI director who reshaped the bureau after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and later served as special counsel in the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, died Friday night.

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He was 81, according to a statement from his family.

Mueller served under Republican President George W. Bush, who nominated him, and Democrat President Barack Obama, who asked him to extend his tenure beyond his original 10-year term.

Trump, who had long been at odds with Mueller, responded to news of Mueller’s death with a celebratory post on Truth Social.

The president wrote in a Saturday afternoon Truth Social post, "Robert Mueller just died. Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!"

Bacon, who has criticized Trump’s foreign policy positions, including the president's push to acquire Greenland, also condemned Trump’s comments about Mueller, telling Politico, "It is clearly wrong and unchristian behavior."

“Representative Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, called President Donald Trump’s response celebrating the death of former FBI Director Robert Mueller “clearly wrong and unchristian” in a text message to Politico on Saturday”

Newsweek

The congressman, who has been in office since 2017 and is not seeking reelection this year, added, "The vast majority of Americans want better."

Critics of Trump’s remark pointed to Mueller's legacy beyond the Russia investigation, including Mueller’s military service and long career in public service.

Some Republicans, especially those who are not seeking reelection, have recently broken with Trump on high-profile issues, including the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, as well as some of his foreign policy moves.

Mueller was a Princeton graduate and decorated Vietnam veteran who spent decades in public service.

He earned a Bronze Star and Purple Heart during his military service before becoming a federal prosecutor, building high-profile cases against targets including Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega and New York crime boss John Gotti.

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As FBI director—a post he held from 2001 to 2013, making him the second-longest-serving director in the bureau's history behind only J. Edgar Hoover—Mueller fundamentally transformed the agency's mission in the wake of 9/11, shifting its top priority from domestic crime-solving to terrorism prevention and moving 2,000 agents into national security roles.

After leaving the FBI, Mueller was appointed special counsel by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to lead the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

His team spent nearly two years conducting one of the most consequential investigations in Justice Department history, bringing criminal charges against six of Trump's associates.

Trump repeatedly referred to Mueller's probe of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, among other investigations, as a 'witch hunt.'

The special counsel's 448-page report identified substantial contacts between the Trump campaign and Russia but stopped short of alleging a criminal conspiracy, and declined to reach a definitive conclusion on whether Trump had obstructed justice.

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