Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer spent most of his Monday being interviewed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, Politico has learned.
Spicer was queried about President Trump’s decision to fire former FBI chief James Comey, as well as the president’s Oval Office meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Politico’s sources said.
Spicer, who formerly headed communications for the Republican National Committee, followed in the footsteps of his former boss, ex-RNC Chair Reince Priebus, who had served as Trump’s chief of staff.
Priebus sat down with Mueller’s team on Friday.
Former White House Press Secretary spent most of his Monday being interviewed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, Politico has learned
Special Counsel Robert Mueller took over the Russia probe from the FBI after FBI Director James Comey was fired. He’s been speaking to former and current White House officials, most recently Sean Spicer and former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus
Spicer’s interview was expected since he played a role in both the White House and the campaign, moving his RNC office into Trump Tower during the general election to give the GOP nominee an assist.
Politico noted that both former and current White House officials have been probed by Mueller’s team on former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who resigned in February after it leaked that he had secretly discussed sanctions with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and then tried to cover those conversations up.
Mueller and his team, Politico wrote, are also interested in how a misleading statement for the press was crafted aboard Air Force One, on a meeting Donald Trump Jr had in June 2016 with several Russians.
One of the men who arranged the meeting, music publicist Rob Goldstone, in an email to the president’s eldest son, promised some dirt on Trump’s political rival, Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In June, FBI Director James Comey testified before Congress that he believed he was fired over the Russia probe. Politico reported that former Press Secretary Sean Spicer was interviewed by Mueller’s team about Comey’s firing
Ex-Press Secretary Sean Spicer was also asked about President Trump’s (center) May meeting in the Oval Office with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (left) and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak (right)
Mueller is looking into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election, including looking for evidence of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign.
Mueller, a former FBI director himself, was appointed in May by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on the heels of Trump’s decision to fire FBI Director Comey, whose agency was handling the Russia probe.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, having done surrogate work for the Trump campaign, had already recused himself from the Russia investigation, leaving the decision to Rosenstein.
In June. Comey testified before Congress that he believed his firing was due to the Russia probe, telling lawmakers that Trump had suggested the FBI head stop looking into Flynn.
‘It’s my judgement that I was fired because of the Russia investigation,’ Comey said then. ‘I was fired in some way to change, or the endeavor was to change, the way the Russia investigation was being conducted.’
Spicer may be able to give Mueller’s team his perspective on why Trump made that decision.
Trump also baffled the political world by inviting the Russian foreign minister and Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. into the Oval Office for a meeting in May, despite U.S. intelligence agencies pointing a finger at the Kremlin for meddling in the 2016 election.
Trump was captured smiling and greeting Kislyak and Lavrov by a Russian photographer, while the White House communications team – which included Spicer – kept American journalists out.