Trump also fired James Comey, former FBI Director, in May.
After repeatedly denying he is under investigation, US President Donald Trump has finally admitted that he is being probed by the special counsel who is looking into the Russian influence in the US elections.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed Mueller as special counsel following Comey's ouster in early May.
Mr Mueller was appointed as special counsel to investigate Moscow's involvement in the presidential election a year ago and possible collusion by Trump campaign associates with the Russians, but there has been no indication that Mr Mueller told the president to fire Mr Comey. President Donald Trump's closest allies are attacking the integrity of those involved in the widening probe of Russian interference in the USA election, accusing special counsel Mueller of driving a biased investigation.
The Democratic National Committee said it saw a need for Rosenstein to recuse himself, but it said control over the investigation should be given to Mueller and not another Trump appointee.
But it's the firing of FBI Director James Comey that investigators are now exploring-to determine whether the President was trying to obstruct justice.
A memorandum penned by Rosenstein was cited by the Trump White House as the inspiration for the May ouster of James Comey, then-director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
"As the deputy attorney general has said numerous times, if there comes a point when he needs to recuse, he will".
Govt announces 149 new passport centres
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday announced the launch of 149 new Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK). Swaraj further added that the target for the second phase has been kept at 251 because it is an "auspicious number".
While aides have advised Trump to stay off Twitter, the president continued to weigh in Sunday as he spent the weekend at Camp David, the government-owned presidential retreat in Maryland.
Trump on Friday morning boasted about the power of his Twitter feed. The Post has also reported that Mueller is investigating the business dealings of Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner.
This all could be setting up the groundwork for a possible replay of the famous "Saturday Night Massacre" in which Richard Nixon fired his attorney general and other Department of Justice officials until he found one who would terminate the special prosecutor who was investigating the president. Questioning veracity of the Washington Post story, Sekulow asserted that the President could not be under investigation for doing something that the Department of Justice asked him to do.
"If the president thinks he can fire Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and replace him with someone who will shut down the investigation, he's in for a rude awakening", said senator Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat, on Friday.
"After 7 months of investigations & committee hearings about my 'collusion with the Russians, ' nobody has been able to show any proof".
"Witch hunt" is how Trump characterizes the probe into Russia's election interference and possible ties to his campaign associates. Although that's not the rationale that Trump himself said actually explained the firing. It added that the president was not personally notified that he would be probed for obstruction of justice.
INSKEEP: And something that is very much in line with what the White House says, although it was more politely phrased, perhaps, than the president would do.
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