Meanwhile, some Republicans are warning President Trump against firing Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a potential bid to find a replacement who would in turn fire special counsel Robert Mueller and end the investigation into Trump-Russia ties. Senator Chuck Grassley, chair of the Judiciary Committee, said on Twitter he would refuse to hold hearings on any new attorney general this year. Meanwhile, South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham warned the president he’d pay dearly for firing Sessions.

Sen. Lindsey Graham: “If Jeff Sessions is fired, there will be holy hell to pay. Any effort to go after Mueller could be the beginning of the end of the Trump presidency, unless Mueller did something wrong. Right now I have no reason to believe that Mueller is compromised.”

Senator Graham also said he’s crafting a bill that would require “judicial review” of any move by President Trump to fire special counsel Robert Mueller. Meanwhile, Attorney General Sessions broke his silence Thursday, calling President Trump’s mounting attacks on him “kind of hurtful” while defending his decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation. But Sessions told Fox News Trump still has the power to fire him.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions: “If he wants to make a change, he can certainly do so, and I would be glad to yield in that circumstance, no doubt about it. But I do believe that we are making tremendous progress.”