One city’s police agency is already preparing for the worst.

Pittsburgh Bureau of Police has ordered its plainclothes detectives to bring full uniform and riot gear to work starting Thursday, “until further notice.”

“We have received information of a potential large scale protest in the Central Business District,” read an internal email from Victor Joseph, commander of major crimes, according to a copy obtained by a WTAE reporter and confirmed by Pittsburgh’s mayor. The email was sent to plainclothes detectives, according to Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto.

“There is a belief that President Trump will soon move to fire Special Prosecutor Mueller,” Joseph’s email continued. “This would result in a large protest within 24 hours of the firing. The protest would be semi-spontaneous and more than likely happen on short notice.”

“We may be needed to assist in the event that there is a large scale protest,” Joseph added in the email.

The memo, which circulated on Twitter, quickly raised questions about what may have spurred the agency’s preparations.

Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich clarified in a statement that although authorities received information about potential events, “we have not assessed the credibility of the potential for disturbances, and we do not have any knowledge of the President’s decision-making process.”

“The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police receives information daily that we evaluate and prepare for if the event should occur,” Hissrich said. “Events can include anything from extreme weather to potential demonstrations. Often the events we prepare for do not occur. However, through an abundance of caution, we attempt to adequately prepare for an appropriate response.”

Indeed, plans are in the works for potentially large protests if Trump does fire Mueller. Thousands of people in cities across the country have signed up to participate in “emergency” protests called “Nobody is Above the Law.”

“Donald Trump could be preparing to put himself above the law. We won’t allow it,” the group says on its Web page. “Trump will create a constitutional crisis if he fires special counsel Robert Mueller or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees Mueller, or attempts to compromise the investigation by other means.”

“Our response in the hours following a potential power grab will dictate what happens next — whether Congress will stand up to Trump or allow him to move our democracy toward authoritarianism,” the group says.

In Pittsburgh, more than 2,300 people have registered to participate in a potential rally at the Pittsburgh City-County Building, as of early Thursday. If news were to break about a Mueller firing before 3 p.m. on any given day, the rally would begin at 6 p.m. that day. If the news were to break after 3 p.m., the protest would start at noon the following day.

City officials faced criticism on social media from both sides of the political aisle. Some suggested police were trying to clamp down on protesters or that the Pittsburgh mayor was “scaring his constituents” into thinking Trump will fire Mueller.

Peduto fired back at the “conspiracies” on Twitter, saying the police memo “doesn’t claim to know what the President will do. It doesn’t say people can’t lawfully assemble. It says you may be needed to help, bring your uniform. It is called being prepared.”

“A Commander tells Officers to bring uniforms & it becomes a Constitutional issue,” Peduto also said. “Conspiracy Theories come from the right … and the left.”

This is an internal email from a Commander to his plainclothes Detectives. It doesn’t claim to know what the President will do. It doesn’t say people can’t lawfully assemble. It says you may be needed to help, bring your uniform. It is called being prepared. Enough w conspiracies https://t.co/aityTnTKvS — bill peduto (@billpeduto) April 19, 2018

Peduto told WTAE that city officials “want to be precautionary, especially on something that is unprecedented in American history.”

Hissrich also clarified to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette that he specifically asked detectives who work in the major crimes unit, investigating crimes such as homicides, robberies, burglaries, sexual assaults and narcotics, to bring their uniforms and protective gear to work.

“You can’t have officers out in suit and coat,” Hissrich said. “But part of the uniform is the appropriate gear that they have.”

According to the New York Times, Trump tried to get White House counsel Donald McGahn to fire Mueller last June but backed off when McGahn threatened to quit.

Trump has repeatedly said that the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election is part of a “hoax.” He has tweeted that the investigation is “headed up by the all Democrat loyalists, or people that worked for Obama. Mueller is most conflicted of all (except Rosenstein who signed FISA & Comey letter).” And while Trump has considered firing Mueller, many Republicans have urged him not to.

After months of negotiations over a possible bill to protect Mueller from getting fired by Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday that such legislation is “unnecessary.”

“I’m the one who decides what we take to the floor,” McConnell said. “That’s my responsibility as the majority leader. And we will not be having this on the floor of the Senate.”

Trump on Wednesday said there was “no collusion” between his presidential campaign and Russia and that “no one has been more transparent” than he in cooperating with the probe.

“They’ve been saying I’m going to get rid of them for the last three months, four months, five months, and they’re still here,” Trump said of Mueller and Rosenstein. “So we want to get the investigation over with, done with, put it behind us.”

More from Morning Mix:

Statue of ‘father of gynecology,’ who experimented on enslaved women, removed from Central Park</s>President Donald Trump held a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at his Mar-a-Lago resort in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Wednesday.

President Donald Trump held a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at his Mar-a-Lago resort in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Wednesday. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested he had no immediate plans to fire the two Justice Department officials overseeing the investigation into whether his associates colluded with Russia’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 election.

At a news conference Wednesday, Mr. Trump was asked by a reporter whether he planned to fire special counsel Robert Mueller and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, whom he has publicly criticized over the probe.

“They’ve been saying I’m going to get rid of them for the last three months, four months, five months,” Mr. Trump said. “They’re still here.”

The president and his allies have accused Mr. Rosenstein of stonewalling Congress and allowing Mr. Mueller’s probe to stray beyond its intended scope. Meanwhile, lawmakers in Congress are considering ways to protect the Mueller investigation.

Following the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s raids of longtime Trump attorney Michael Cohen’s properties last week, Mr. Trump raged about the probe and attacked Mr. Rosenstein and Mr. Mueller on Twitter. Two people who spoke to him last week said they came away thinking Mr. Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions would soon be gone, the Journal reported last week.

At the news conference, Mr. Trump reiterated his previous stance that there was no collusion and said he was eager for the investigation to conclude. Moscow has denied any meddling.

“This is a hoax,” said Mr. Trump of the notion that the Trump campaign cooperated with Moscow and that Russian interference made an impact in the election result. “It is a bad thing for country, very, very bad thing for our country, but there has been no collusion. They won’t find any collusion. It doesn’t exist.”

“We want to get the investigation over with, done with, put it behind us,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Trump made the remarks at a news conference at his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.</s>As his frustration with the investigation into his campaign and business expands into threatening new fronts, President Donald Trump refused to say Wednesday whether he plans to fire special counsel Robert Mueller and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

“As far as the two gentlemen you told me about, they’ve been saying I’m going to get rid of them for the last three months,” Trump said during a joint press conference with the prime minister of Japan. “Four months. Five months. And they’re still here. So we want to get the investigation over with, done with, put it behind us.”

READ MORE: Pittsburgh police are preparing for massive riots if Trump fires special counsel Robert Mueller

Mueller has been investigating possible collusion between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russian officials, as well as possible obstruction of justice. Trump said Wednesday he has co-operated with Mueller’s investigators and that his team had turned over more than a million documents.

Trump and his allies hit a new level of anxiety after the raid on his personal attorney’s office, fearful of deeper exposure for Trump, his inner circle and his adult children – and more than concerned that they don’t know exactly what is in the records and electronic devices seized last week.

There is also some worry that Michael Cohen, the self-described legal fixer who helped make bad stories go away and took a leading role in Trump Organization projects in foreign outposts, may strike a deal with prosecutors out of concern about his own prospects.

READ MORE: Paul Manafort expected to try to convince judge to drop charge in Russia probe

Trump’s anger at the probe has intensified, with him musing publicly and privately in recent weeks about firing Mueller and Rosenstein. Those around Trump have hoped that this week’s visit to his estate Mar-a-Lago, where he is generally happier, along with the tightly scheduled summit with Abe, would somewhat distract him from Cohen and former FBI director James Comey’s book and publicity tour.

But White House aides have also expressed worry that they can control Trump less at his palatial Florida estate, where he is known to seek out counsel from club members and get revved up by their at-times provocative advice. Trump took to Twitter earlier Wednesday to unleash both on Comey, whom he called “slippery” and the “worst director in FBI history,” and the porn star Stormy Daniels matter, which returned to the headlines in the wake of the Cohen raid.

Cohen paid the money to buy Daniels’ silence after her alleged affair with Trump. The porn actress and her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, released a sketch Tuesday of the man they said threatened Daniels in 2011 if she ever went public with her claims against Trump.

“A sketch years later about a nonexistent man. A total con job, playing the Fake News Media for Fools (but they know it)!” Trump tweeted in what was apparently his first comments on the allegations except for brief remarks made earlier this month in response to a reporter’s questions on Air Force One. He has denied the affair.

READ MORE: Trump says Comey not fired over Russia investigation — after saying that’s what happened

The federal raid on Cohen’s office and hotel room, carried out a week ago in New York, sought bank records, information on his dealings in the taxi industry, his communications with the Trump campaign and information on payments he made in 2016 to Daniels and to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who also alleges a relationship with Trump. Court proceedings Monday dealt with who gets to look at Cohen’s seized documents and devices before they are turned over to prosecutors.

Though Cohen once said he “would take a bullet” for Trump, he is aware of the possible outcome – including potential prison time – and has expressed worry about his family, said a person who has spoken to the lawyer in recent days but was not authorized to discuss private conversations. Cohen has not been charged with anything.

Trump’s moods have grown darker in recent days, as he lashes out at the “overreach” of the raid. Further angering the president is that the raid was triggered in part by a referral from Mueller. The seizure was authorized by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Though a bipartisan effort was in the works in the Senate to protect Mueller, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said he would not bring the legislation to the floor for a vote and that it wasn’t necessary because Trump wouldn’t fire Mueller.</s>Keep calm and raise hell. The forces of truth and justice may be closing in on President Donald Trump, but there is no reason to believe they can triumph without massive displays of outrage in the streets and at the polls.

Potentially the most serious threat Trump has ever faced came last week when FBI agents raided the office, home and hotel room of his longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. By all accounts, Cohen’s role for the president and the Trump Organization has been that of a “fixer” who brings in deals and makes problems go away.

As everyone knows by now, Cohen “facilitated” payment of $130,000 to porn star Stormy Daniels to buy her silence about the sexual tryst she says she had with Trump. And according to a lawsuit filed by former Playboy model Karen McDougal, Cohen was involved behind the scenes in cementing a $150,000 agreement that squelched her story of a 10-month affair she says she had with Trump.

But the president’s sex life may be the least of his worries on the Cohen front. For more than a decade, Cohen was in a better position than anyone — arguably, even Trump’s children Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Eric, who also worked in the family firm — to know the intimate details of Trump’s business dealings.

Was the Trump Organization buoyed by an influx of Russian money, as Donald Jr. once claimed? Were there Russian contacts that have not yet been disclosed? Did Trump or his campaign collude with Russians to meddle in the election? In its real estate sales, did Trump’s firm take the required precautions against money laundering by shady characters? Did Trump’s swashbuckling business style, of which he so often boasts, ever cross the line into illegality?

Cohen can likely provide answers. If necessary, FBI agents may refresh his memory with the audio recordings they allegedly seized of Cohen’s phone conversations.

“Attorney-client privilege is dead!” Trump tweeted after learning of the raid. “A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!!”

On the rare occasions when federal authorities raid an attorney’s office, they must go through elaborate and rigorous procedures. A judge has to approve the search warrant, which requires a showing that evidence of specific crimes will likely be found. Documents seized are examined by a special “taint team” of prosecutors who have had no previous involvement in the case and whose only role is to redact materials covered by attorney-client privilege before passing the rest to the principal investigators. The Cohen raid was authorized not by special counsel Robert Mueller but by the office of the U.S. attorney for the southern district of New York. None of this is good news for Cohen — or for Trump.

The other development that reportedly has the president in a rage is the scathing verdict on his character delivered by former FBI director Jim Comey in a newly published book and an interview with ABC News.

All right, Comey does come off as something of a sanctimonious tool. But his book’s account of Trump’s repeated demands for a pledge of personal loyalty and wholly inappropriate attempts to interfere in the Russia investigation ring true. In the ABC interview, Comey charged that Trump was “morally unfit to be president.”

Comey compared Trump to a mafia boss — “It’s the family, the family, the family, the family” — and said there is “some evidence” that the president committed obstruction of justice. Asked by George Stephanopoulos whether he believes the Russians “have something” on Trump, Comey replied, “I think it’s possible.”

For those of us who agree with Comey’s judgments about the president and welcome the vise-like pressure on Cohen, all of this is emotionally satisfying. But so what?

The White House asserted last week that Trump has the power to fire Mueller, and clearly he would love to do so. Trump could also seek to neuter Mueller’s probe by firing his supervisor, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and installing someone more pliant.

If Trump took either of these actions, would Congress stand up to him? Not this Congress. Not unless millions protested across the nation to demand action. Massive demonstrations might work — but also might not.

The only sure way of guaranteeing that this aberrant administration is investigated, held accountable and properly restrained is to put Democrats in control of one or both houses of Congress. A new Washington Post poll shows that the Democratic edge over Republicans ahead of the midterm election has narrowed. Instead, it needs to grow.

Only you and I can stop Trump. It’s all about November.

Eugene Robinson is a columnist for The Washington Post.</s>Donald Trump and his supporters don’t paint a pretty picture for America should he become president.

Over the course of the 2016 presidential campaign, most of America has been aghast at the things the GOP presidential nominee has said and unnerved by many of the actions of his supporters.

With the polls so close in many states and the resurgence of the Clinton email scandal, Roland Martin and NewsOne Now discussed what America would look like if Trump were elected President of the United States of America.

Martin, host of NewsOne Now, shared that nearly one-third of a sample group of Trump supporters follow White nationalists on social media.

Eugene Craig III, Vice Chairman of the Maryland Republican Party, said, “With Steve Bannon being the campaign chairman, Donald Trump for the last couple of years has been stroking the darker sense of the American populism.

“You see it online every day at Breitbart, you see it online every day in the darkest parts of the internet, you see it online with the Alt-Right, which is American racist by another term,” said Craig. “Donald Trump has brought these folk to the forefront and has given them a platform they feel as though is their own.”

Jessica Byrd, Principal of Three Point Strategies, told Martin Trump’s campaign “explicitly condones” the use of inflammatory language and “is inciting it across this country.”

Rashad Robinson, Executive Director of the Color of Change, reminded viewers Trump “launched his campaign by calling a whole group of people rapists” and “came onto the [political] stage by questioning the legitimacy of the first Black president.”

The Black activist does not think anyone should be surprised by bigoted views being expressed by Trump and his supporters at this point, but finds the “confluence of Donald Trump and reality TV and social media, this place where the villain becomes that star,” to be rather interesting.

Robinson also said websites like Reddit allow individuals who harbor bigoted views to gather, “build more energy together, and feel more connected.”

Robinson explained Trump’s rhetoric has given them a voice.

“The question will be: Do 50 percent of the American public accept that? Do 50 percent of the registered voters who will turn out accept that? That’s what we’re all worried about, that’s what we’re waiting to see,” said Robinson.

Watch Roland Martin and the NewsOne Now panel discuss what America would look like if Donald Trump were to be elected the next President of the United States in the video clip above.

Watch NewsOne Now with Roland Martin, in its new time slot on TV One.

Black Man Who Trump Called ‘Thug’ And Ejected From Rally Is A Supporter

Also On The Chicago Defender:</s>PALM BEACH, Fla. -- U.S. President Donald Trump is attempting to rewrite history on his rationale for firing James Comey as FBI director last year.

In a Wednesday morning tweet sent as Comey promotes his criticism-filled new book, Trump says he "was not fired because of the phoney Russia investigation." But in an interview days after the sudden firing, Trump revealed that the probe into potential collusion during the 2016 campaign was on his mind at the time he made the decision.

The White House's initial explanation for Trump's decision was Comey's handling of the Clinton email investigation, and it released a memo from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein justifying the decision. But two days after firing Comey, Trump undercut that rationale.

In the interview with NBC on May 11, 2017, Trump said, "In fact, when I decided to just do it, I said to myself, I said, 'You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story."'

Trump decided to fire Comey over the objections of his top advisers at the time, including chief of staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Steve Bannon.

Comey's firing, and Trump's subsequent suggestion that the Russia investigation was a factor in the decision, led Rosenstein to appoint special counsel Robert Mueller to oversee the investigation. Mueller is now investigating the Comey firing as part of an investigation of potential obstruction by the president.

Appearing Wednesday on ABC's "The View," Comey said he doesn't know why Trump fired him. But he said the president's Wednesday tweet that Comey was not dismissed because of the "phoney Russia investigation" illustrates a problem the former FBI director said he's been trying to highlight during his book-promotion tour.

"It matters that the president is not committed to the truth as a central American value," Comey said.

In an interview with ABC that aired Sunday, Comey said there is "certainly some evidence" that Trump had obstructed justice when Comey said the president pushed him to take a lenient stance toward former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty last year to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russia's ambassador to the United States.</s>Former FBI Director James Comey says in an exclusive interview with USA Today that it is possible that Russia has compromising material on President Donald Trump. Rough Cut (no reporter narration)

Comey says 'possible' Trump is compromised by Russia 1:18

EVEN his greatest detractor concedes Donald Trump can’t ruin the strong relationship between the United States and Australia.

Just days after James Comey declared President Trump “unfit for office” and a “stain” on everyone who works for him in an interview with American network ABC, the Ex-FBI boss says Australian’s relationship with America is safe.

In an interview with Leigh Sales on ABC’s 730 program set to air tonight, Comey said the depth of diplomatic and cultural ties between the Australia and one of its closest allies in America, will remain during President Trump’s time in the White House.

“I know the extent and culture of the relationship between the two countries,” Mr Comey said.

“It’d be hard to screw up the relationship between the United States and Australia.

“No one president has enough time to screw it up, because it’s so longstanding and so beneficial to both sides.”

Comey also told said any thoughts his handling of Hillary Clinton’s email scandal may have influenced the 2016 election upset him.

When asked what role he might have played as FBI Director in the election, Comey replied: “I hope and pray none.”

“The notion that we had an impact on the election makes me sick to my stomach,” he during the interview used to promote his new book A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership.

Comey reopened the investigation days before Americans went to the polls on November 8, 2016, a move many pundits believed influenced voters.

In the 730 interview Comey also defended his move not to talk about the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the election.

He said it was early in the investigation and “we didn’t know what we had”.

“It just makes it more painful,” he said.

“You’ve still got to do the right thing and choose as — again, as I thought about it, between bad and catastrophic. You’ve got to choose bad everyday over catastrophic.

“The notion that because of the choices we had to make we had an impact, leaves me feeling ill. Now, it may sound odd to say, but that wouldn’t change the way I thought about the decisions.”

Comey also touched on the future of Robert Mueller in the interview.

After Comey was fired Mueller, also a former Director of the FBI, was appointed as special prosecutor to probe allegations of Russian interference.

Comey said it would be a waste of time if Trump moved to sack Mueller.

“The practical effect would be almost nil”, he said.

“Because somebody will pick it up, and if that person gets fired the next person will pick it up, and so until the buildings are vacant, it wouldn’t stop.

“So I think it would be bad for a lot of reasons to fire the special prosecutor here, it would be an attack on the rule of law.

“But it would actually be dumb because it wouldn’t be stopping the goal of stopping the investigation.”</s>PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Pittsburgh Police are gearing up for possible protests in the event President Donald Trump fires special counsel Robert Mueller.

A memo went out to the police department from Victor Joseph, commander of the Pittsburgh Bureau of police.

In the memo the department’s detectives are instructed to begin wearing a full uniform and carrying riot gear with them in anticipation of massive protests.

Police believe the protest would happen within 24 hours of Mueller’s firing.

“There is a belief that President Trump will soon move to fire Special Prosecutor Mueller. This would result in a large protest within 24 hours of the firing,” the emails states.

“We have received information of a potential large scale protest in the Central Business District. The protest would be semi-spontaneous and more than likely happen on short notice,” the email says. “Beginning Thursday, all Major Crimes detectives are required to bring a full uniform and any issued protective equipment (riot gear) with them to work until further notice.”

McConnell said he would not hold a floor vote on the legislation even if it is approved in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

McConnell claims the bill is not necessary because President Trump will not fire Mueller.

The bipartisan legislation was introduced last week as Mr. Trump publicly criticized Mueller who is investigating potential ties between Russia and Mr. Trump’s campaign.</s>
• Pittsburgh police have alerted detectives and officers of potential protests if Special Counsel Robert Mueller is fired by President Donald Trump.
• The police have been told to be in uniform and have riot gear ready beginning Thursday.

The Pittsburgh police department has reportedly alerted its officers and detectives of potential protests if President Donald Trump fires the special counsel Robert Mueller, and is preparing for riots if he does.

Pittsburgh police sent an email on Wednesday telling officers and detectives that the department has "received information of a potential large protest in the Central Business District" that would be a response to Trump firing Mueller, according to Marcie Cipriani of WTAE-TV, the ABC station in Pittsburgh.

The police department also warned that the protests could happen in as little as 24 hours after the potential termination. The police have been told to be in uniform and have riot gear ready beginning on Thursday until further notice.

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto confirmed the email that the city's police force is preparing for protests, according to Cipriani.

"You want to be precautionary, especially on something that is unprecedented in American history," Peduto told her.

The warning comes at a time when there are growing concerns that Trump could look to undermine or completely shut down special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 US election and the Trump campaign's possible ties to Russia. Trump has recently ramped up his public and private attacks on Mueller's probe.

Many Republicans and Democrats have urged the president not to fire Mueller or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who is overseeing the special counsel's investigation on behalf of the Justice Department. Lawmakers have told Trump to allow the investigation to run its course and not to impede, as it could lead to a constitutional crisis and a potential impeachment.

Some lawmakers have proposed legislation to protect Mueller and the investigation from being disbanded, but GOP leadership has indicated it thinks that's unnecessary.

On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he wouldn't let such a bill make it to the Senate floor for debate.

There have been two reported instances when Trump apparently considered firing Mueller:
• In May 2017, shortly after Mueller's appointment and following then-FBI director James Comey's firing. White House general counsel Donald McGahn reportedly threatened to resign if Trump demanded that he carry out the order, and Trump backed off.
• In December 2017, after Trump caught wind of reports that Mueller was seeking information on his family's personal business dealings with Deutsche Bank. Mueller's team notified Trump associates at the time that the reports were untrue.

Trump has publicly said he doesn't plan on firing Mueller, because if he wanted to, "he would have" already.</s>Pittsburgh police have issued a memo to department detectives to prepare for possible protests should President Trump fire special counsel Robert Mueller. 



The memo, issued by Victor Joseph, commander of the Pittsburgh bureau of police, instructed detectives to begin wearing a full uniform and carrying riot gear “until further notice”.

“There is a belief that President Trump will soon move to fire Special Prosecutor Mueller. This would result in a large protest within 24 hours of the firing,” the emails states.

“The protest would be semi-spontaneous and more than likely happen on short notice,” the memo read and was issued based on “information of a potential large scale protest in the Central Business District”.

The police department appeared to be acting on information gathered from a group, Nobody is Above the Law, that has been preparing for demonstrations should the president move to fire Mueller.

More than 2,300 people have reportedly registered to participate in a potential rally at the Pittsburgh City-County building if the special counsel is removed.

However, Pittsburgh’s public safety director, Wendell Hissrich, seemed to back off from the police department’s warning, saying that the decision was precautionary and not based on any specific intelligence.



Hissrich released a statement about the possible protests: “Often the events we prepare for do not occur. However, through an abundance of caution, we attempt to adequately prepare for an appropriate response.”

The safety director added that city officials “do not have any knowledge of the President’s decision-making process”.



On Wednesday, Trump signaled that he is in no rush to fire either Mueller or the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein.

The Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, blocked bipartisan legislation that would make it harder for Trump to fire Mueller, calling it unnecessary because he did not believe Trump will move to fire the special counsel.

On its webpage, Nobody is Above the Law warned that “Donald Trump could be preparing to put himself above the law. We won’t allow it,” the group says on its web page.

“Our response in the hours following a potential power grab will dictate what happens next – whether Congress will stand up to Trump or allow him to move our democracy toward authoritarianism,” the group says. It added that it currently has more than 800 protest rallies planned and had received 300,000 RSVPs.
Pittsburgh Police prepares large riot gears for a potential protest if Donald Trump fires Robert Mueller.