WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on the announcement of a Special Counsel to take control of the U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the “Russian government efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election and related matters.”

Senator Cardin: “Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has shown his fidelity to the rule of law with the much needed announcement of a Special Counsel to investigate potential criminal activity and collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian Government in the 2016 election. His choice of Robert Mueller was solid and shows the seriousness Mr. Rosenstein brought to this decision. Rather than ‘make this go away’, Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein has taken an important step toward restoring the credibility of the DOJ and FBI in this most serious matter. 

“The next step is for Congress to establish an independent, nonpartisan 9/11-style commission to provide the American people with a comprehensive review of Russian interference in our country and public recommendations for how we can avoid this kind of nightmare in the future.”

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