Democrats move to defend Mueller against Trump allies

Democrats are making a fresh push to defend special counsel Robert Mueller as conservatives escalate their political assault on the Russia investigator.

President Donald Trump’s allies in recent days have renewed their attacks on Mueller amid reports that a top deputy traded anti-Trump texts over the summer, evidence of what they claim is a festering bias. Several news organizations also reported Tuesday that Mueller had subpoenaed records about Trump’s finances from Deutsche Bank, potentially delving into an area that Trump has said could lead him to fire the special counsel. And the conservative legal group Judicial Watch released an email Tuesday from another Mueller prosecutor that it said showed evidence of Trump animus.

The developments are raising new alarms among Democrats that Trump could follow through on his past flirtation with firing Mueller, although Republicans say they don’t see a pressing need to protect the special counsel.