While President Donald Trump hasn't actually fired special counsel Robert Mueller, Pittsburgh cops are already preparing for riots in case he does.
Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Commander Victor Joseph drafted a memo to all its officers warning that they had received intelligence indicating that in the case of a Mueller firing, there could be "a potential large scale protest in the Central Business District."
Joseph was apparently worried about the possibility of violence, telling officers that moving forward they would have to bring riot gear to work, according to the memo obtained by local CBS station KDKA.
"Beginning Thursday, all Major Crimes detectives are required to bring a full uniform and any issued protective equipment (riot gear) with them to work until further notice," Joseph wrote.
Trump has often denied he plans to fire Mueller, who is investigating allegations that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016, while simultaneously appearing to entertain the idea.
"Why don't I just fire Mueller? Well, I think it's a disgrace what's going on," he asked aloud while talking to reporters at the White House following a raid on the offices of Trump attorney Michael Cohen.
Days later, Trump said rumors that he was planning to fire Mueller were "Fake News."
"If I wanted to fire Robert Mueller in December, as reported by the Failing New York Times, I would have fired him. Just more Fake News from a biased newspaper!" Trump tweeted on April 12.
In response to potential backlash against the special counsel, Democrats and moderate Republicans in the Senate introduced a bill that would make it harder for Trump to fire Mueller. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) has said he will not bring the bill to the floor, calling it very unlikely Trump would fire Mueller.
"I don't think he should fire Mueller and I don't think he's going to," McConnell said in the interview with Fox News. "So this is a piece of legislation that isn't necessary in my judgment."