Article snippet: Two Republican members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sens. MORE not to fire intelligence community Inspector General Michael Atkinson. The New York Times reported Tuesday afternoon that Trump has discussed firing Atkinson because the intelligence official found a whistleblower’s complaint about Trump's July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky credible and took action to advance it. Atkinson raised the profile and impact of the complaint by classifying it as “an urgent concern,” which then required the director of national intelligence to review the complaint and share it with the congressional oversight committees. Republicans on the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday said firing Atkinson in response to his actions would not be a wise move. Asked if Trump should fire Atkinson, Cornyn said “no” and added, “I think it would be counterproductive.” Cornyn added that he had only heard that the president was thinking about firing Atkinson from reporters and he had not received any confirmation from sources in the administration. Collins said she had “absolutely no idea” whether Trump in fact has considered firing Atkinson but warned it would be a mistake. “It’s obviously something that I would oppose. I have a lot of regard for the inspector general and believe that he did what he thought was right,” she said. Sen. MORE (Va.), the Democratic vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, warned that firing Atkinson would be an “... Link to the full article to read more