On the morning after the Justice Department appointed Robert Mueller, who preceded James Comey as head of the FBI, to serve as a special counsel overseeing the investigation of US president Trump's ties to Russia during his election campaign, President Trump responded forcefully to the accusations against him. Trump depicted this as the "single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history," adding that "With all of the illegal acts that took place in the Clinton campaign & Obama Administration, there was never a special councel appointed!"