Posted on 09/24/2018 5:54:10 PM PDT by yesthatjallen
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein faces a high-stakes meeting on Thursday with President Trump that may determine his future as the Department of Justice official charged with overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.
The White House punctuated hours of speculation about Rosenstein’s future by revealing that Trump and the No. 2 Justice Department official on Monday had an “extended conversation to discuss the recent news stories” and would meet in person on Thursday.
The day began with reports that Rosenstein was headed to the White House with the expectation that he would be fired days after Friday’s bombshell New York Times report that he had discussed wearing a wire to record Trump as part of an effort to invoke the 25th Amendment and expel the president from office.
Rosenstein had denied that story, calling it false and issuing two statements that sought to dispel it.
Conflicting reports at midday on Monday had Rosenstein either resigning or expecting to be fired as he met at the White House with chief of staff John Kelly. Cable news showed Rosenstein getting into an SUV for the ride, while social media watched with breathless anticipation.
The visit ended anticlimactically, with Rosenstein attending another White House meeting that had previously been scheduled — and with the mystery of his fate punted to Thursday, when Trump will be back in Washington after his trip to New York for annual meetings at the United Nations (U.N.).
“We’ll be determining what’s going on,” Trump told reporters Monday on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly. “We want to have transparency, we want to have openness, and I look forward to meeting with Rod at that time.”
Trump’s decision to meet Rosenstein on Thursday sets up a spectacular day.
At one end of Pennsylvania Avenue, Trump will meet with the official who appointed Mueller, instigating a process that has been an irritant for the president for more than a year. At the other end of the street, lawmakers will hear testimony from Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and a woman accusing him of sexual misconduct.
Rosenstein’s ouster would put a new official in charge of the Russia investigation at a pivotal moment, opening Trump up to charges that he is seeking to quash the probe. Democrats on Monday were already comparing events to “The Saturday Night Massacre,” when several Justice officials resigned after then-President Nixon ordered the firing of a special prosecutor.
“This is the next step in a slowly evolving, slow-motion ‘Saturday Night Massacre’ in which the president is getting rid of all the people who were involved in initiating or carrying out the investigation of obstruction of justice by him,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said on CNN.
Some Republicans have also expressed worries. Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) tweeted that she is “very concerned” over the prospect of Rosenstein being fired or forced to resign.
Others questioned whether the episode was a smokescreen intended to draw attention away from the Kavanaugh drama, the other story dominating Washington.
Rosenstein has been a frequent target of the right, and allies of the president say he should be fired if he really wanted to wear a wire to gather information on Trump.
“People have been fired for much less,” said former Trump campaign aide Sam Nunberg, who echoed Republican allegations that the Justice Department has slow-walked document requests from Congress. “You should at some point face consequences for your actions and this is simply the last straw.”
Separately, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who has been critical of Rosenstein, is calling on him to testify before Congress about the allegations in the Times report.
Rosenstein has presided over Mueller’s investigation as it has pressed forward for 16 months, serving as acting attorney general with respect to the probe as a result of Jeff Sessions’s recusal.
Should he resign or be fired, Solicitor General Noel Francisco would be next in line to oversee the investigation.
On Monday, Jay Sekulow, one of Trump’s personal lawyers, suggested there should be a “timeout” in the Mueller investigation should Rosenstein be removed.
“I think it’s really important that there be a step back taken here, and a review, and I think it’s a review that has to be thorough and complete, and a review that has to include an investigation of what has transpired,” Sekulow said.
With respect to Rosenstein’s role as deputy attorney general, his resignation would allow Trump to install an acting replacement who is not subject to Senate confirmation as a result of the Vacancies Act, though that official would not be able to also act as acting attorney general overseeing the Russia investigation.
“I think the implications are far greater for Rosenstein’s other functions where the president could pick someone who might not necessarily be Senate-confirmed,” said Stephen Vladeck, a law professor at the University of Texas.
It becomes murkier if Trump decides to fire Rosenstein, because the law does not say Trump can appoint an acting replacement for an official who is fired.
Firing Rosenstein could also have the adverse effect of opening up Trump to charges of obstruction, which Mueller is currently investigating as part of his sprawling probe.
“Folks will argue that,” said Vladeck, though he added, “I think the president would have a nonfrivolous argument that Rosenstein was fired for cause.”
Monday’s developments are the latest chapter in a months-long feud between the president and his top law enforcement officials over an investigation that he views as a politically driven “witch hunt” against him.
Trump has lashed out at Rosenstein and, more frequently, Sessions for their roles in the Russia probe, and some have suggested the president could fire Sessions after the midterm elections.
“We’ll see how it goes with Jeff,” Trump told Hill.TV in an exclusive interview last week. “I’m very disappointed in Jeff. Very disappointed.”
The Deep State wants Trump to fire Rosenstein so they can claim obstruction.
-- Words written Sunday which uncannily prophesied Rosenstein's Monday antics ...
... and will likely continue to apply for the foreseeable future.
The Deep State wants Trump to fire Rosenstein so they can claim obstruction.
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Trump would use insubordination as the reason. The DS wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. But they’d spin it like a top.
I think Rosenstein stays.
The best treatment is to NOT fire Rosenweasel but to let him twist in the wind and face charges.
what if they get confused and rosenweasel ends up at judiciary, and ford meets trump?
I hope Trump gives the following options: (1) resign; (2) force me to fire you and I will publicly specify what you did. It won’t be pretty.
Electric Light Orchestra, climactic song in “Kingpin” movie:
“It’s a showdown”
“The Deep State wants Trump to fire Rosenstein so they can claim obstruction. “
I want Trump to GUT THE DOJ TOP TO BOTTOM—STEM TO STERN. I want military tribunals and hangings on the national mall, too.
The corrupt state is moving in for the kill. It’s kill or be killed. He can’t wait any longer.
He shouldn’t listen to IDIOTS like Hannity and Levin.
Trump should have the Secret Service SWAT Rosenstein for orchestrating a coup. Order him shot on sight, but only him and family, not his dogs.
Agreed.
We’ve made it this far with the creep. He can await his fate until after the midterms.
I’m sure his dogs hate him.
Is Trump stupid? Is he on a suidide mission?
Do not meet, do not speak.
We have a winner.
Well, let’s just wait for Rosenstein to be indicted (if that is happening in about a month).
The midterms are not going to strengthen Trump’s hand AT ALL. If dems take either house or senate, the swamp won’t be drained AT ALL. This entire massive high treason coup conspiracy flushed down the memory hole. America over.
You make your choice brethren.
BBC World Sce radio had obstruction of justice meme going today, but don’t mention it specifically in this document. instead, they include a 25th amendment video:
24 Sept: BBC: Rod Rosenstein: Russia inquiry chief set for Trump showdown
Russia-Trump inquiry
VIDEO: 2:02 Rod Rosenstein’s year under pressure (features San Collins, Lindsey Graham etc ends with Rosenstein saying it’s important not to think as Democrats or Republicans, but to think patriotically as Americans!)
VIDEO: 2:04 The 25th Amendment: Could it be used to unseat Trump?
Mr Rosenstein oversees the inquiry into alleged collusion by the Trump team with Russia during the 2016 election...
The furore around Mr Rosenstein’s position comes as mid-term elections are looming on 6 November, when the president’s party will try to keep control of the US Congress...
According to the newspaper, Mr Rosenstein had also suggested surreptitiously recording the president in order to expose the chaos in the White House.
He denied the claims, and a Department of Justice spokesperson told the BBC the secret recording remark was just a joke...
Without Rosenstein, Russia inquiry in doubt
Analysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC Washington
If Rod Rosenstein goes, by resignation or firing, the future of Robert Mueller’s special counsel investigation would be very much in doubt.
Sean Hannity, a Fox News host and friend of Mr Trump, has urged him to not fire Mr Rosenstein, warning he would fall into a trap laid by his political enemies...
Andrew McCabe, the former acting director of the FBI who was fired by Mr Trump in March, said on Monday that he was “deeply concerned” about rumours of Mr Rosenstein’s departure as it would put the Russia investigation “at risk”.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45632210
on radio, BBC said Rosenstein’s friends said it was a joke, not a DOJ spokesperson as the above states.
video alone:
VIDEO: 2:02 - BBC: Rod Rosenstein’s year under pressure
US President Donald Trump wants Rod Rosenstein to stop the Russia investigation while lawmakers on both sides urge him to stand tall
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-45634682/rod-rosenstein-s-year-under-pressure
BBC is absolutely evil.
He needs to do so and ignore the media!
But they are going to take either.
“BBC World Sce radio had obstruction of justice meme going today”
Trump is the executive branch. He can fire anyone at anytime for any reason. Especially the scumbags committing high treason. If he can’t do that, America is truly farked beyond the point of no return.
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