WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Robert Mueller, picked as special prosecutor to investigate President Donald Trump, violated the US Constitution as FBI Director by using secret domestic spy programs, National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower William Binney told Sputnik.
"My problem with Mueller is that he agreed with and used the Stellar Wind spying program at NSA against common crime since 2001," Binney said Wednesday. "He admitted to this in a 2011 interview with [Time magazine correspondent] Bart Gellman."
Mueller was appointed on Wednesday by Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein as special prosecutor to investigate Trump and his aides’ alleged dealings with the Russian government before the 2016 presidential election.
"This means he [Mueller] did not live up to his oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution against foreign and domestic threats. So, he clearly has a selective view of how you apply the Constitution," Binney explained.
James Comey, Mueller’s successor as FBI Director, who was fired by Trump on May 9 had also been willing to ignore the US Constitution in order to use NSA data collected without any legal warrant against ordinary criminals, Binney recalled.
William Binney worked for the NSA for 36 years, retiring in 2001 as the technical director of world military and geopolitical analysis and reporting; he created many of the collection systems still used by NSA.
The White House and Moscow have denied the accusations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said Moscow did not have official contacts with Trump's team during the presidential campaign.
Russian officials have repeatedly denied charges of interfering in the US election, characterizing the allegations as an absurd attempt to divert public attention from domestic issues. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow did not have official contacts with Trump's team during the presidential campaign.
