Attorney General Rod Rosenstein believed the White House used him to help justify President Trump’s firing of FBI director James Comey last May, the New York Times reported Friday.
“Shaken,” “unsteady,” “overwhelmed,” “frantic” and “upset” were among the adjectives Rosenstein acquaintances offered to the newspaper to describe his mood in the days after Comey’s abrupt dismissal.
Both Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions wrote memos rationalizing Comey’s firing, citing his unprecedented public discussion of the FBI’s election-year investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. Rosenstein defended the memo to Congress last year, saying, “I stand by it.”
The deputy attorney general is in an uncomfortable position. He bore witness to that firing and then appointed Robert Mueller as special counsel in the federal Russia investigation, which is now probing whether Comey’s firing constituted obstruction of justice. Some lawmakers have called for Rosenstein to recuse himself from overseeing Mueller’s investigation because of that conflict.
The Times also reported that Rosenstein did not consult with Sessions before deciding to appoint Mueller, a move that blindsided the attorney general and infuriated the President. Sources told the paper he made that step privately because he feared being fired by Trump.
Attorney General Rod Rosenstein believed the White House used him to help justify President Trump’s firing of FBI director James Comey last May
In related news, dog bites man.
What did he think the memo was going to be used for? I mean, it wasn’t some kind of academic endeavor.
But, whatever with the memo. He’s of utmost importance now. The Mueller investigation bodyguard.
The amount of government dysfunction visible in between the lines of the NYT article is … impressive.
Trump uses everyone like a Kleenex and requires his minions to do the same.
“Rosenstein did not consult with Sessions before deciding to appoint Mueller, a move that blindsided the attorney general and infuriated the President. Sources told the paper he made that step privately because he feared being fired by Trump.”
It sounds as if Rosenstein had the idea that Trump was already engaged in obstruction.
Also, as a bonus, if he felt used by Trump, and thereby offended, Rosenstein certainly got his payback. It never pays to tick off someone who knows far more about the system you work in than you do.