CORRUPTER-IN-CHIEF:

Q: DO PRESIDENTS OVERSEE INVESTIGATIONS OF THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT?

A: Definitely not.

Long-standing protocol dictates that the FBI and Justice Department operate free of political influence or meddling from the White House. That's one reason that the FBI director serves a 10-year term and does not turn over the reins as presidential administrations come and go. It also means that presidents are not supposed to supervise, initiate or stop law enforcement investigations.

White House officials and Justice Department lawyers aren't even meant to talk with each other about ongoing criminal investigations or civil enforcement actions, though there is leeway granted for matters of national security, including terrorism.

A 2007 Justice Department memorandum says that though it's important for the Justice Department and White House to communicate freely on many matters, the department will advise the White House of criminal or civil-enforcement matters "only where it is important for the performance of the president's duties and where appropriate from a law enforcement perspective."

"This limitation recognizes the president's ability to perform his constitutional obligation to 'take care that the laws be faithfully executed' while ensuring that there is public confidence that the laws of the United States are administered and enforced in an impartial manner," the memo states.

Trump said during the campaign that he would have his attorney general appoint a special prosecutor to look into Clinton, though such an appointment ultimately rests with the attorney general. On Tuesday, he said he was not inclined to continue with an investigation of Clinton "for whatever power I have on the matter."

Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, Trump's pick for attorney general, has expressed an appreciation for the independent nature of the job. He asked Loretta Lynch during her confirmation hearing as attorney general last year if she was "able and willing to tell the president of the United States no if he asks permission or a legal opinion that supports an action you believe is wrong?" Lynch said she was.

Q: WHY IS THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT'S INDEPENDENCE SO IMPORTANT?

A: Justice Department officials have long considered it imperative that their investigations not be politicized or tainted by suspicions of interference by the White House or other elected leaders.

Any hint of political meddling could undermine public faith in the legitimacy of an investigation. It could raise the prospect that a person is being investigated, or is being spared from investigation, on the whims of political considerations rather than evidence of guilt or innocence.

Past episodes that have blurred the line between politics and the administration of justice have been fairly disastrous for the government.

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