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Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) Speaks with the media on Wednesday. (J. Scott Applewhite / AP)
Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake said Wednesday that it would not be possible to vote for the President of the United States. Robert S. Mueller III of being fired – a pledge that could complicate Republicans' hope to confirm dozens of conservative before the end of the year.
Flake's warning will likely force to the President of the United States. It also means that the Senate will have a seat in the Senate Judiciary Committee, where the GOP has only one seat, one of the 21 nominees waiting for that panel's endorsement. That also will require Pence's tie-breaking vote.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Blocked Flake and Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) From holding a vote on the bill, which would be given to the panel of judges. Most Republicans – including co-authors Sens. Thom Tillis (RN.C.) and Lindsey O. Graham (RS.C.) have argued that the bill is no longer needed. in Trump's campaign conspired with those efforts.
Flake challenged that rationale, given Trump 's recent decision to add Matthew G. Whitaker as acting attorney general and give him oversight of the Mueller probe. Whitaker has made statements that are critical of the investigation. Flake said he believes Whitaker should recuse himself from the Russia probe, letting deputy attorney general Rod J. Rosenstein reassume authority over it.
"The President now has this investigation in his sights and we all know it," he said on Wednesday.
"You use what leverage you have," he added. "This is a priority now."
[[Justice Dept. legal defendant Whitaker's appointment as acting attorney general]
Flake is withdrawing at the end of the year, at which point it is unlikely to be complicate the confirmation process. But he and Coons said they hope to convince other Republicans to join their effort. If one more Republican does, they and the Democrats would be able to prevent their nominees confirmed in 2018 – a move that would have a strong message about the importance of the special counsel bill.
"We are confident [the bill] would get 60 votes if given a vote, "Coons told reporters. "It's time for us to move from speech to action."
One senator that Coons and Flake may be Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). Last week, she said that she would think that the Senate would vote on the bill.
"The debate on this bill would have a powerful message that Mr. Mueller must be able to complete his work unimpeded," said Collins in a statement, in which she was "concerned" about Whitaker's Views on Mueller's probe.
This is not the first time Flake, who is retiring at the end of the year, has broken up from his party to team up with Coons. FBI investigation into sexual assault allegations against Brett M. Kavanaugh before voting on his appointment to the Supreme Court. In that instance, they succeeded.
Earlier Wednesday, the Justice Department issued a memo defending the legality of Whitaker's appointment. Some legal experts have suggested that Whitaker, who is Sessions' chief of staff, is ineligible for the general job, even on an acting basis, because he was not confirmed by the Senate.
Devlin Barrett contributed to this report.
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