How Democracies Die

      Donald Trump absolutely intends to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Of course he does. This eventuality is perfectly clear, and anyone who can't or won't see it is in denial fueled by a massive case of pernicious wishful thinking, self-interest, jelly-spined fear, or whatever combination of the above is keeping our Republican-led Congress from even acknowledging the obvious, let alone  doing anything about it.
     Donald Trump will fire Robert Mueller because the Special Counsel's team, in its investigation of Russian meddling in our 2016 Presidential election along with any other corruption or wrong-doing it might uncover along the way, is slowly closing in on Donald Trump and his empire. Last week Mueller's investigators subpoenaed the Trump Organization's business records. Investigators don't subpoena business records out of idle curiosity; the Special Counsel smells the smoke of a fire that will burn right to Donald Trump's gilded door.
      Except that Donald Trump won't let the investigation go that far. He'll fire Robert Mueller first and then shut down the investigation. He'll do it soon. He's already setting the stage for his play - his farce - with tweets falsely accusing Robert Mueller of the kind of malfeasance that a special counselor could be fired for: conflict of interest, political bias, "witch hunt" harassment. Trump will  repeat and re-tweet his accusations against the Special Counsel until the accusations - which are already sticking with his base - stick in the minds of the American public.
      But it really doesn't matter whether or not Trump's accusations against Special Counsel Robert Mueller stick in anybody's mind but Trump's own. He'll fire Mueller anyway.
​        He'll attempt to have Attorney General Jeff Sessions do it,

...even though Jeff Sessions is supposed to have recused himself from any involvement in the Russia investigation, Sessions himself having been in the past, if not up to his neck with the Russians, at least up to his knees. (Nota bene: Once Donald Trump has no more use for Jeff Sessions Trump will kick him out - Sessions by then being so mud-spattered and so stinking to high heaven that no one will want to come anywhere near him -  just as Trump kicks aside everyone else who no longer serves his purposes).
     But if Jeff Sessions won't do Trump's bidding in firing Mueller then Trump will hand the dirty job  to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and if Rosenstein won't fire Mueller then Trump can give the job to Rosenstein's assistant, and if  Rosenstein's assistant won't do it Trump can call on the assistant to the assistant, then the assistant to the assistant to the assistant, on down the line to the Department of Justice building janitor or the assistant to the janitor if need be.
      And this Donald Trump will do. To save his skin he'll go down the line until he finds some sycophant or political opportunist willing to defile him- or herself and our country's rules of law and justice.
       And the members of the Republican Congress will let it all happen. Of course they will. If they weren't intending to let it happen they'd already be acting to prevent it from happening. They'd be moving at this very moment to pass bipartisan legislation that's already been introduced in the Senate to protect the Special Counsel from interference in his investigation. This law would in essence protect Robert Mueller from being fired by Donald Trump.
       But the Republicans in Congress won't pass this law. They could, but they won't.
     Republican lawmakers prefer to pretend that the law isn't necessary because Donald Trump wouldn't dare fire Robert Mueller. Pretending Trump wouldn't do what we all know he'll do is easier than standing up to him.
     "I've received assurances (Mueller's)  firing is not even under consideration," says House Speaker Paul Ryan.
       "I don't think (firing Mueller is)  going to happen so I just think (the legislation protecting Mueller is) not necessary," says  Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate.   
     “(Firing Mueller) would be the beginning of the end of his presidency, because we’re a rule-of-law nation,” says Republican Senator Lindsay Graham.
        But what does Donald Trump really care about his presidency or the rule of law if his self-preservation is at stake?
      Firing Mueller would be "the stupidest thing the President could do," says Orrin Hatch, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
      Actually, under the circumstances firing Mueller is the smartest thing Donald Trump could do to save himself.  And he'll do it, and Congress will let him do it, surly as day follows night.
      Donald Trump will then get get away scott-free from the consequences of whatever transgression of law, ethics or decency the Special Prosecutor is now on the scent of.

      Then, feeling newly affirmed, empowered, unleashed and unstoppable, Donald Trump will henceforth follow no counsel or law but his own.

      You don't have to read the book to learn how democracies die; you just have to read the news.
       Please prove me wrong.

References:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/gop-leaders-yet-move-protect-special-counsel-043951735--politics.html

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/20/politics/donald-trump-robert-mueller-lawyer/index.html

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/15/politics/robert-mueller-donald-trump-organization-russia/index.html