#ProtectMueller Rally Remarks from November 8, 2018

In October 1973, I was in Washington working for Common Cause when President Nixon fired Watergate Special Counsel Archibald Cox for refusing to allow Nixon to block the Watergate investigation. This became known as the Saturday Night Massacre.

Today, I am still in Washington, and the organization I head, Democracy 21, is part of the huge coalition of organizations sponsoring this event today.

We are here to protest President Trump’s brazen move yesterday to grab control of the Mueller criminal investigation, which involves the President and his son. Today is just the beginning of our protests.

Within days of the firing of Cox in 1973, a new Watergate Special Prosecutor was appointed to continue and complete the investigation.

The reason for Nixon’s reversal: an explosion of citizen protests throughout the country. Citizens rose up and made clear they would not stand for President Nixon’s frontal attack on the rule of law or for the constitutional crisis he created.

Today we face another President making a frontal attack on the rule of law and potentially creating another constitutional crisis.

That is why we are here today – to protest, along with our colleagues around the nation, this attempt being made by President Trump to cripple or kill the Mueller investigation.

We do not intend to let President Trump cover up the Russian invasion of our elections and end the Mueller investigation.

We demand that Mr. Whitaker either step aside or be removed from overseeing the Mueller investigation.

We demand that Members of Congress act now to demand the removal of Mr. Whitaker as overseer of the Mueller investigation.

We demand that Members of Congress take all steps necessary to protect the integrity and independence of the Mueller investigation, regardless of who is overseeing it.

For example, earlier this year, Senator Lindsey Graham said “I pledge to the American people, as a Republican, to make sure that Mr. Mueller can continue to do his job without any interference.”

Now is the time for Senator Graham to turn his words into action.

We demand that Senator Graham carry out the unequivocal pledge he made to the American people to make sure the Mueller investigation continues without any interference.

Archibald Cox said in 1973 after his firing as Special Watergate Prosecutor, “Whether we shall continue to be a government of laws, and not of men, is now for Congress and ultimately the American people [to decide].”

The American people responded in 1973 and they decided we will continue as a government of laws. In the end, President Nixon resigned his office.

Now it is our job to meet the challenge put forward by Archibald Cox.

It is the job of the American people to ensure we continue to be a government of laws by ensuring the Mueller investigation is protected against interference and allowed to proceed to its logical end.

We intend to meet Archie Cox’s challenge that we continue as a government of laws.

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