Article snippet: MORE to immediately stop the Russia investigation, a significant escalation of Trump's attacks against the long-running probe that has dogged his presidency. The remark was Trump's most direct public appeal yet to end special counsel MORE's investigation, which he has blasted for months. It also raised questions from legal experts about whether the president was attempting to obstruct justice. In a series of morning tweets, Trump called the investigation a “terrible situation” that must be stopped “before it continues to stain our country any further.” “Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now," Trump wrote. The president declared that the notion his campaign conspired with Russia in its effort to interfere in the 2016 presidential election is a “TOTAL HOAX." He also made the unsubstantiated claim that Mueller, a Republican appointed by Deputy Attorney General MORE were meant to obstruct the investigation. “Tweets like this one directing the Attorney General to stop the investigation of Trump and his friends are among the many reasons why Mueller will conclude Trump obstructed justice,” former federal prosecutor and CNN legal analyst Renato Mariotti argued in a tweet. The White House and Trump's legal team raced to contain the fallout over the president's comments on Wednesday, saying Trump was merely venting his frustration with the special counsel probe and not giving an order to Sessions to end the investigation. “It's an op... Link to the full article to read more