Pittsburgh police are being asked to bring their riot gear to work in case U.S. President Donald Trump fires special counsel Robert Mueller.
Mueller is investigating whether Trump’s presidential campaign had ties to Russian officials. Mueller has indicted several people formerly affiliated with the campaign, including ex-campaign chair Paul Manafort. He’s also reached plea agreements with others, including ex-national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Amid speculation from pundits about Trump’s views on Mueller, the Pittsburgh police are being proactive in case the event does occur.
According to a letter obtained by TV News channel WPIX 11, Victor Joseph, head of Major Crimes, instructed his officers to bring protective equipment with them until further notice.
“There is a belief that President Trump will soon move to fire Special Prosecutor Mueller. This would result in a large protest within 24 hours of the firing,” the email said.
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The Mayor of Pittsburgh, Bill Peduto, told WTAE News reporter Marcie Cipriani that the preparations are simply precautionary.
There are more than 800 rallies planned across the U.S. in the event that Trump fires Mueller. Called “Nobody is above the law,” organizers say a “rapid response” would be needed because of the “constitutional crisis” that the firing would create.
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The rallies are also planned if Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees the Mueller investigation, is fired.
It’s unclear whether or not the preparations by the Pittsburgh police are because of these public events or if other details are known.
Mueller was appointed shortly after Trump fired former FBI director James Comey. At the time, Trump told NBC’s Lester Holt the Russia investigation was a factor in his decision, but Trump walked back that statement this week saying he was “not fired because of the phony Russia investigation where, by the way, there was NO COLLUSION” in a Tweet on Wednesday morning.
There has been speculation Trump has wanted to fire Mueller for a while, and The New York Times reported earlier this year that Trump tried to do it in June 2017, but was stopped by the White House counsel.
Trump has countered the claims, saying on Twitter that, “If I wanted to fire Robert Mueller in December, as reported by the Failing New York Times, I would have fired him.”
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