In a tweet early Thursday, Trump said: "They made up a phony collusion with the Russians story, found zero proof, so now they go for obstruction of justice on the phony story".
The special counsel appointed to investigate Russian influence in the 2016 presidential campaign is now examining whether President Donald Trump tried to obstruct justice, The Washington Post reported Wednesday evening.
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that special counsel Robert Mueller is seeking interviews with Coats and two other Trump administration officials and that the Russian Federation investigation is widening to examine whether President Donald Trump tried to obstruct justice.
In his June 8 appearance before the Senate Intel Committee, Comey, who Trump fired on May 9, detailed the attempts by the President to blunt or halt the FBI's probe into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, Russia's role in the 2016 Presidential election.
The White House has been inconsistent with its public messaging about the dismissal - initially saying Trump took the recommendations of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein about Comey's management of the FBI and his handling of the Clinton email investigation.
News of Mueller looking into potential obstruction comes after former FBI Director James Comey testified last week.
The emergence of the obstruction of justice inquiry may make it harder for Trump to have Mueller removed.
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In his testimony on June 8, Comey told the Senate Intelligence Committee that he believed Trump had fired him over his role as lead of the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the US election and Trump campaign associates' possible ties to Russia.
Mark Corallo, a spokesman for Mr Trump's legal team, on Wednesday denounced the report, saying: "The FBI leak of information regarding the President is outrageous, inexcusable and illegal".
But, "Officials say that changed shortly after Comey's firing", the Post reports. Nor did he deny he has entered the miniscule ranks of sitting presidents who have become the subject of a criminal investigation.
The top lawyer for the Trump transition team has ordered the organization's staff to preserve all records and other materials related to the widening investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller into contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian representatives. Comey testified in a Senate hearing last week that he believed he was sacked "because of the Russian Federation investigation".
The president has long vehemently denied any collusion with Moscow, either by himself or his associates. "They're the ones we are not winning in", he said at the Mid-Winter Ball. On Monday, a Trump friend said the president was considering dismissing Mueller though the White House later said he had no plans to do so. Calling the President a "liar" on several occasions, Comey told the Senators that Trump said to him in a face-to-face meeting at the White House that he expected "loyalty" from the then Federal Bureau of Investigation boss. The investigations, however, have cast a shadow over his five-month presidency.
The Senate intelligence committee has also interviewed Johnson in connection with its investigation of Russian activities during last year's election campaign.
The Washington Post previously reported that Trump also asked Rogers and Coats to push back against the FBI's investigation. Any findings by the department's investigation would be referred to Congress, where lawmakers would determine whether to impeach the president.
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