Trump’s top lawyer for Russia probe resigns

By Safvan Allahverdi

WASHINGTON

President Donald Trump's lead lawyer in the special counsel’s Russia probe stepped down Thursday.

“I love the president and I wish him well,” John Dowd, a prominent attorney who joined Trump's legal team last year, said in a statement, without elaborating.

Dowd’s decision may have come after a disagreement with Trump over strategy as the president was “increasingly ignoring his advice” amid his growing frustration with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, according to U.S. media reports.

The latest move also comes amid a shake-up on Trump’s legal team, which recently added former U.S. attorney Joseph diGenova, a staunch critic of the FBI.

Despite Trump’s lawyers advising him to cooperate with Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and its possible link to the Trump administration, Trump has stepped up his attacks against the special counsel.

Trump has repeatedly rejected such accusations, denying any collusion between his campaign and the Kremlin, and has also insisted he should sit for an interview with Mueller's office, which Dowd considered unwise.

With Dowd's departure, Trump’s legal team will be led by counsel to the president Jay Sekulow and diGenova.

"John Dowd is a friend and has been a valuable member of our legal team. We will continue our ongoing representation of the President and our cooperation with the Office of Special Counsel," said Sekulow.

Mueller, a former FBI director, was appointed last year to serve as special counsel for the FBI’s ongoing probe into Russia and the Trump campaign a week after Trump's decision to fire then FBI Director James Comey in connection with the investigation.

Comey’s firing amid the ongoing FBI probe prompted many to question his rationale, including from within his own party.

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe was also fired, just two days before his official retirement last week.

McCabe, in a blistering statement, claimed the move was aimed at slandering him and discrediting the FBI as well as the special counsel's probe.