Fear: Trump in the White House(107)

Dowd reminded Mueller that he’d said he wouldn’t let grass grow under him. “The grass is about a foot high, pal. We keep defending you with the president.”

Mueller said he was dead serious about finishing the investigation.

“Well, I got to tell you, Bob, I don’t know how long I’m going to last. I defend you guys all the time. I stand up for what you’re doing. But you know, we got people being interviewed over and over again.”

With Mueller, Dowd pushed gently.

With Quarles, he complained. “Enough is enough!”



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Dowd had other problems. Ty Cobb started giving interviews to the media saying that the investigation would be over by the end of 2017. “I’d be embarrassed if this is still haunting the White House by Thanksgiving,” he told Reuters, “and worse if it’s still haunting him by year end.” The media ran stories with Cobb’s picture. Dowd now thought Cobb looked like an old Western sheriff with a handlebar mustache out of the Western novel and miniseries Lonesome Dove and he was astonished. He was the lead lawyer for the president. Was Cobb having separate conversations with Quarles?

No, Cobb insisted. “My wife wants me out of this,” he said. “And so I’ve been trying to nudge it along publicly.”

“There’s interviews scheduled in December,” Dowd said. “And frankly, they’re all favorable to the president so we’re going to let them go.”

Kelly asked Dowd, “Where’d you find this fucking friend Ty?” Cobb had started off on the wrong foot with Kelly, going behind the chief of staff’s back to the president to get an office in the West Wing. He told Cobb, “Don’t you ever go behind my fucking back again.”

Dowd assured the president that their strategy of dealing with Mueller was “to cooperate and grind them down until we had a 3D picture of what was in their heads.” Based on this picture and the cooperation of 37 witnesses and all the documents turned over, he repeated several times, “I don’t see a case.”

Under Article II of the Constitution, Dowd explained to him, the president solely ran the executive branch. And all of his actions, particularly pertaining to Comey, were within those powers. “I will never tell you that your instincts are wrong about these guys and what they’re up to. We’ve been treated very nicely. But we treated them very nicely.”



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In December a story ran in the German financial daily Handelsblatt saying the Mueller investigation had subpoenaed records from Deutsche Bank, the largest in Germany, and the primary lender to Trump.

The president called Dowd at 7 a.m. He was furious.

“I know my relationships with Deutsche Bank,” he said. He maintained the bank loved him and always got paid. “I know what I borrowed, when I borrowed, when I paid it back. I know every goddamn one.” He could recall whom he had dealt with and other details with specificity. “I’m telling you, this is bullshit!”

Dowd pushed Quarles. “Hey, Jim, there’s no secrets here. This is bullshit.”

A conference call was scheduled with lawyers from all the relevant law firms. Everyone sounded like they were talking in code.

“Look, would you please,” Dowd said. “My guy does not talk in code.”

Finally Quarles reported, “There’s nothing there. We had subpoenas to Deutsche Bank way back in the summertime, but it doesn’t involve the president or his finances.”

At 10 a.m. on December 21, Dowd went to see Mueller in an attempt to turn the tables. Often the best defense was to go on the offense.

“All the records have been produced,” Dowd said. “All the witnesses have been interviewed except one or two. The entire inquiry appears to be the product of a conspiracy by the DNC, Fusion GPS—which did the Steele dossier—and senior FBI intelligence officials to undermine the Trump presidency. The failure to investigate Comey’s role precipitating the inquiry is a travesty. Comey’s aberrant and dishonorable conduct demands scrutiny.” The Justice Department Inspector General was investigating Comey’s actions in the Clinton email case. “Kicking the can to the IG undermines confidence in your inquiry,” Dowd claimed.

Mueller did not reply.



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Mueller and Quarles kept pushing. They wanted to interview the president. On January 8, 2018, Mueller dictated a list of 16 topics they wanted to ask. Nearly all dealt with Flynn, Comey or Sessions.

Dowd advised the president that list was not specific. “What I’d like to do is I’d like to push it even further so you have a better picture. You know, 16 topics, you’re kind of guessing as to what they’re going to ask you.”

“What are you going to do?” Trump asked.

“Well, my idea is we’re going to write him a letter answering these.” They would present the facts as they saw them, and make legal arguments especially about the president’s Article II powers. “And do it like a Supreme Court brief.”

“We’ve given them everything,” Trump insisted. Why wasn’t it enough? He added, “I don’t mind talking to him.”

Dowd and Jay Sekulow spent the next two weeks drafting the letter. Sekulow, a frequent commentator on the Christian Broadcasting Network and Fox News, had represented conservative, religious and antiabortion groups over a 30-year career.