'March For Truth' Demands Deeper, Transparent Probe Into Russian Meddling
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- Protesters have gathered around the U.S. in a March for Truth, demanding President Donald Trump be held accountable for alleged ties to Russia.
"Every day we learn more about the role Russian state-led hacking and information warfare played in the 2016 election, and there are crucial unanswered questions about the relationship between the Russian state and Donald Trump, his associates and his campaign," said organizers. "If the President was elected even in part due to collusion with a foreign effort to interfere in our democratic process, then the will of the people has been subverted."
Dozens of advocacy groups are leading the marches, held in hundreds of cities across the country, including New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
Miami's protest began Saturday morning at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center, at 111 N.W. 1st Street, despite poor weather. Ft. Lauderdale's rally was scheduled for the late afternoon at Huizenga Plaza at 1 East Las Olas Blvd.
While an investigation into possible Russian meddling during last year's election is underway, the groups want "an independent commission with subpoena powers."
Two weeks ago, former FBI Director Robert Mueller was appointed by the Department of Justice to serve as Special Counsel on the Russia investigation.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said it wasn't enough.
"A special prosecutor is the first step, but it cannot be the last," she said last month. "He cannot take the place of a truly independent, outside commission that is completely free from the Trump administration's meddling."
President Trump responded to Mueller's hiring saying, "a thorough investigation will confirm what we already know – there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity."
The March for Truth shared several goals, including the independent commission "properly resourced and pursued free of partisan interests." They demand full transparency into information uncovered and also urge Congress to require the president to release his tax returns to "clarify his business interests and obligations to any foreign entity."
If crimes or collusion is discovered, the organization said, prosecutions must follow.
"The legitimacy of our democracy is more important than the interests of any party, or any President," their webpage concludes. "So, we will rise together to call for a complete, fair and impartial investigation, for the pursuit of truth, and for the restoration of faith in our electoral system and the Office of the Presidency."
