Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is pushing back against calls from a handful of Republicans to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller from the investigation into possible collusion between President Trump's campaign and Russian officials during the 2016 presidential election.

Speaking on the floor of the Senate Wednesday, Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, called such statements "reckless," "inappropriate," and "extremely worrying." They are also "at odds with the president's own lawyers who have pledged to cooperate with the special counsel. Beyond being irresponsible, the seemingly coordinated nature of these claims should alarm us all."

One of the Republicans calling for Mueller's removal is conservative Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, who, without citing any evidence, called the probe a "corrupt investigation." While Trump has said he has no plans to fire Mueller, Warner still warned him on Wednesday that any attempt to remove Mueller from his position "or to pardon key witnesses ... would be a gross abuse of power and a flagrant violation of executive branch responsibilities and authorities. These truly are red lines." Catherine Garcia

More than two decades after the Rwandan genocide, four new mass graves have been found in Kigali Province, containing 2,000 to 3,000 bodies.

The first bodies were found Sunday, Rwanda's The New Times reports, and the excavation is ongoing. An old photo album was found in one of the graves, and relatives of people who have been missing since the genocide have flocked to the area, hoping to find out if their relatives are buried there.

More than 800,000 people, Tutsi and moderate Hutus, were murdered during the 1994 genocide. Survivors want to know why it took so long for the graves to be discovered, with one telling The Associated Press, "Those who participated in the killing of our relatives don't want to tell us where they buried them. How can you reconcile with such people?" Catherine Garcia

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) has been publicly admonished.

The Senate Ethics Committee has issued a public letter of admonition to the senator after he refused to disclose gifts from Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen and allegedly used his job in the Senate to advance Melgen's interests.

Melgen was sentenced to 17 years in prison after swindling $73 million from Medicare, per the Sun Sentinel. Menendez accepted flights and hotel stays from the doctor, and intervened when Medicare discovered it had been overbilled by Melgen, per the letter. A federal judge acquitted Menendez and Melgen on several charges of bribery earlier this year, though the Justice Department said it intends to retry the pair.

Menendez has denied all charges against him and so far, he has escaped severe punishment — until now, with the Senate's stern warning letter. The activist group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington notes that Thursday's note from the Ethics Committee is actually the "harshest thing they've done in years."

It even finishes with this stinger: "Finally, by this letter, you are hereby severely admonished." Kathryn Krawczyk

The FBI warned the White House of former Staff Secretary Rob Porter's abuse allegations in three separate reports months before he resigned, The New York Times reported Thursday.

Porter resigned in February after two of his former wives publicly alleged that he had physically abused them. The White House claimed that no senior officials knew about the allegations until the week of his departure, but documents reviewed by the Times show that the FBI gave White House Counsel Don McGahn a report that "contained derogatory information" back in March 2017.

A former federal law enforcement official said that the abuse allegations were included in the report, which the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is reviewing in order to determine how Porter was given high-level security clearance despite abuse claims. The FBI reportedly reached out to the White House about Porter a second time, in July 2017, and a third time in November 2017.

The Times report casts doubt on the previous explanation from the White House about Porter's employment. At the time of Porter's resignation, officials claimed that the report they received in March didn't include anything about spousal abuse. One White House official insisted to the Times that McGahn never saw the July report and explained that lower-level staffers must have failed to pass it along to the "right people." Read more at The New York Times. Summer Meza

The parents of a college student held captive in North Korea have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the country.

Otto Warmbier, 22, was held in North Korea for 17 months after allegedly stealing a political poster while touring the country. He was medically evacuated from North Korea last June and died a few days after returning home in a coma.

Now, his parents say he was "brutally tortured and murdered" and forced to "falsely 'confess' to an act of subversion on behalf of the United States government," per the lawsuit. They are suing to hold the government of North Korea "legally accountable" for their son's death, per The Washington Post, and are seeking damages.

North Korea alleges Warmbier died after contracting botulism and has denied nefarious involvement. But a U.S. coroner said an injury more than a year old, which starved Warmbier's brain of oxygen, caused his death. There were no clear signs of torture to Warmbier's body, the coroner said.

The suit comes amid a softening of tensions between North Korea and the U.S. Just-confirmed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Kim Jong Un over Easter weekend, and President Trump is narrowing down a time to meet with the North Korean leader, per CNN.

Fred Warmbier, Otto's father and one of the plaintiffs, was Vice President Mike Pence's guest at the Winter Olympics in South Korea. Kathryn Krawczyk

The anchors of Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" will bring their hi-jinks to the 70th annual Emmy Awards. Michael Che and Colin Jost were named co-hosts of the television award ceremony, NBC announced in a statement Thursday. The network also revealed that Lorne Michaels, SNL's creator and executive producer, will be executive producing the Emmys this year.

"NBC is thrilled to be the home of this year's Emmy Awards and with Colin and Michael in the driver's seat as hosts, along with surprise appearances by other cast members of Saturday Night Live, I think we are in for one of the funniest awards shows in a long time," said Robert Greenblatt, chairman of NBC Entertainment, in the statement.

"We're proud to be the first duo hosting the Emmys since Jenna Elfman and David Hyde Pierce," said Che and Jost in a joint statement. "And somehow that's a real fact." Elfman and Pierce were co-hosts of the Emmys in 1999, per CNN.

Jost and Che both began on "Weekend Update" in 2014 and were named co-head writers of SNL in 2017, per the statement. SNL swept nine awards during last year's Emmys and continues to see "strong ratings," especially in the 18-to-49 demographic, Variety reports.

"We're proud of our deep comedy roster at NBC," said Paul Telegdy, president of NBC Entertainment's Alternative and Reality Group, per NBC's statement. "And Michael and Colin — along with the return of king of comedy producer Lorne Michaels — will make this the must-see comedy event of the year."

The 2018 Emmys will air Monday, Sept. 17, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. Mary Catalfamo

For attorney Michael Cohen, President Trump's move to Washington was something of a breakup — one he's still not over.

Cohen, who has been Trump's personal attorney for years, is apparently going through a bit of a rough patch with the president, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Trump reportedly sought to distance himself from his longtime fixer once he decided to run for office, and apparently privately described him as a "bull in a china shop" with a tendency to make problems worse.

Cohen was disappointed that Trump didn't tap him to run his campaign or to work as White House chief of staff, the Journal reports. And his frustration has mounted as Trump publicly downplays his relationship with Cohen in the face of allegations of an affair with adult film actress Stormy Daniels, whom Cohen paid $130,000 in a hush agreement in 2016.

The attorney reportedly shared his feelings with the president from afar, telling him in a phone call last year: "Boss, I miss you so much. I wish I was down there with you."

Trump on Thursday admitted to Fox & Friends that Cohen represented him in the Daniels case, but said that Cohen only handled a "tiny, tiny little fraction" of his legal work. Trump's delayed repayment of the hush money reportedly pushed Cohen to consider "defecting" from Trump's side, even though he has publicly said he'd "take a bullet" for the Trump family.

The Journal reports that Trump is likely paying close attention to his legal bull lately, hoping his crash through the metaphorical china shop doesn't take the president down with him. Read more at The Wall Street Journal. Summer Meza

The Senate confirmed Mike Pompeo as President Trump's next secretary of state Thursday. Pompeo, who was previously serving as CIA director, was sworn into office Thursday afternoon by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and immediately departed to Brussels for a summit with NATO allies.

In celebration of Pompeo's confirmation, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted never-before-seen images of Pompeo meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un over Easter weekend. Reports of Pompeo's secret meeting with Kim leaked earlier this month, and Trump later confirmed the summit occurred. See the photos below. Kimberly Alters