President denies report he tried to fire Mueller

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump on Friday denied a report alleging he ordered the firing of special counsel Robert Mueller last summer. The New York Times reported Thursday that Trump attempted in June to fire the head investigator looking into alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election by Russian operatives and possible collusion with the Trump campaign. The Times, using four anonymous officials familiar with the order as sources, said White House counsel Don McGahn refused to ask the Justice Department to fire Mueller and threatened to quit. “Fake news, folks. Fake news,” Trump said when asked about the report Friday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “Typical New York Times.” Earlier this week, the president told reporters he would be willing to meet with Mueller’s team to cooperate with the investigation, if needed. This is the first report alleging Trump ordered the special counsel’s firing. According to the Times, Mueller caught wind of the incident a few months ago as his team interviewed White House officials. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein took oversight of Mueller’s work after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the probe. If Trump did want to fire Mueller, he would have to get Rosenstein to carry out the request.