[Blitzer:] Right now, Attorney General Jeff Sessions is deciding whether to fire the former FBI deputy director, Andrew McCabe, just days before he is scheduled to retire and receive full federal benefits. CNN has learned the FBI's Office of Professional Responsibility has been a recommendation McCabe be fired, but the ultimate decision to fire him is up to Sessions himself. We're joined now by former senior counsel to the deputy attorney general under President Obama, Eric Columbus, and former counsel to the assistant attorney general for national security, Carrie Cordero. Guys, thanks very much. Eric, let me ask you, he worked at the FBI for 22 years. He's scheduled to retire on Sunday. Between now and then, Sessions could potentially fire him, and he would lose his pension.
[Eric Columbus, Former Senior Counsel To Deputy Attorney General:] Yes. There are two questions here. One is whether McCabe did something wrong and, two, whether he should be fired for it. The first one, we don't really know the answer. We're just reading press reports that suggest that he was not forthcoming and misled the FBI's Office of Professional Responsibility and possibly also the inspector general's office regarding contacts he had with the press for a 2016 news story. Now, assuming that he was at fault in that, the question is, is proper to terminate him for that and to do it days before he is set to retire. And we would need to know more facts about this, because did the FBI follow their normal process. Did it go is this something that's been brewing for months or is it just a sudden rush to judgment to try to fire him because Donald Trump clearly hates the guy?
[Blitzer:] He's tweeted against him. White House officials have as well. Let's talk a little about Robert Mueller's investigation, the decision, Carrie, to go forward and subpoena the Trump Organization for business documents, something the president earlier, some are suggesting, would be a red line, don't cross it. The decision to subpoena for those documents as opposed to simply asking for the documents is significant.
[Carrie Cordero, Cnn National Security Analyst:] Well, it is, and yet because it's the president's company. Right? I mean, that's why it's so significant because this is the Trump Organization and his private business, and this is his whole family's business. But a subpoena, generally, in a complex criminal investigation is a standard investigative technique. So given the scope of this investigation, it's not surprising a subpoena would be issued. The difference between a subpoena and a voluntary request, meaning there is a requirement that the Trump Organization, when they receive this subpoena, they have to preserve everything, and so, that way, the special counsel's office doesn't have to negotiate what will be produced. They know what they want produced will be.
[Blitzer:] I raised the question, Eric, because, earlier, there was voluntary handing over of documents from the Trump Organization to Robert Mueller and his team, and they did cooperate, the promised to cooperate. And now, all of a sudden, the decide to issue, presumably, grand jury subpoena.
[Columbus:] There may also be the possibility that the Trump Organization is doing this to protect themselves if there are documents that they are contractually obligated to keep confidential once a valid subpoena or search warrant is issued.
[Blitzer:] The whole notion, Eric, let me get your thoughts on this, whether or not Robert Mueller and his team already have Donald Trump's IRS tax returns over the years, or whether the subpoena is designed to get those tax returns.
[Columbus:] I do think that they have his tax returns to the extent that they want them. I don't think his personal tax returns would be in the possession of the Trump Organization anyway.
[Blitzer:] But they could simply go ahead and ask the IRS returns for those tax returns and the IRS would have to comply?
[Cordero:] They would have to work with the IRS to be able to obtain those. There's actually, you know, have to be a process in working with the IRS. And they very well may be doing that. Probably, given the heart of the investigation, which part of it in terms of whether or not there was any cooperation, has to do with what would have been the motivation for Donald Trump and his campaign to cooperate. Any financial information for the organization and whether there are major debts and foreign debt would play into that and be relevant.
[Blitzer:] It's a sensitive matter, given the president's refusal over all this time to release publicly those tax returns, even though other presidential candidates and presidents have always done so. All right, guys, thanks very much for coming in. Under attack. The U.S. government accuses Russia of targeting the U.S. power grid, putting America's nuclear and electric systems in peril. Congressman Eric Swalwell, of the House Intelligence Committee, he's standing by to join me live. And we're also on stand-by for the White House press briefing. Looking at live pictures coming in. Sarah Sanders getting ready to answer reporters' questions. Stay with us for live coverage.