Former Attorney General Eric Holder (D) blasted the Trump administration over the firing of FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, calling the timing of the dismissal “cruel.”
“The timing appears cruel and a cave that compromised DOJ independence to please an increasingly erratic President who should’ve played no role here,” Holder tweeted early Saturday. “This is dangerous.”
Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired McCabe on Friday, two days ahead of the top FBI official’s scheduled retirement. The dismissal puts McCabe’s pension at risk, which he would have been eligible to receive on Sunday.
{mosads}
Sessions dismissed McCabe for not being forthcoming to investigators during an inspector general review. He also said an internal FBI office found that McCabe made an unauthorized disclosure to the media.
McCabe quickly on Friday night countered the administration’s narrative, saying he was fired to try and undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russia’s election interference. The former FBI official could be a key witness in the probe, as he led the agency in the weeks following the firing of former FBI Director James Comey.
McCabe had already stepped down as the agency’s deputy director earlier this year amid pressure from Republicans, and was on leave ahead of his upcoming retirement.
President Trump, who had repeatedly attacked McCabe, celebrated the firing on Twitter just hours after it took place.
“Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI – A great day for Democracy,” Trump tweeted.
Holder has frequently compared Trump unfavorably to his predecessor, former President Obama.