Posted on 10/18/2018 1:23:48 PM PDT by yesthatjallen
James Baker testified behind closed-doors on Thursday before two GOP-led House panel about his role as the FBI general counsel during the 2016 presidential election.
The meeting marks Baker’s second recent interview before the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees, panels which are leading a joint investigation into FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) decision-making during the 2016 election.
GOP lawmakers say Baker, who appeared before the panels earlier this month, told congressional investigators that he believes Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein was serious when he told other officials he was considering wearing a wiretap during an Oval Office meeting with President Trump last year following Trump’s firing of then-FBI director James Comey.
The New York Times, which published the bombshell report disclosing the wiretap discussion, also said Rosenstein raised the possibility of the 25th Amendment, talking about possibly removing Trump from office with the help of other Cabinet officials.
Rosenstein and the DOJ have fiercely disputed the story, stating that some comments were made in jest. Baker, however, told congressional investigators and a select group of GOP lawmakers that he believed Rosenstein meant them.
“It is deeply troubling that you got the former general counsel of the FBI saying in their reactions to Rod Rosenstein that there was going to be a wire worn by him with the president of the United States and that there was discussions he was having with cabinet members about invoking the 25th Amendment,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) also told reporters.
Despite rumors that Rosenstein’s job security was threatened, Trump recently told reporters that he has no plans to fire the top DOJ official following a private meeting between the two on Air Force One.
Although it is unclear what new information lawmakers gleaned from this second meeting with Baker, conservative House members appeared to ramp up their attacks against Rosenstein.
Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), one of the president’s strongest allies and a fierce critic of the FBI and DOJ, called on Rosenstein to immediately resign after the interview concluded.
"I think that it’s time that Rod Rosenstein steps down,” Meadows told reporters, citing reasons like “misplaced” priorities, lack of candor, and “unwillingness” to submit to congressional oversight.
“He should do so immediately and in doing that, I think it would serve the country well, it would serve this president well," he added.
House Freedom Caucus members previously said Rosenstein should either testify before Congress or resign from his post.
Baker, whom GOP lawmakers described as being cooperative, did not respond to reporters’ questions about his testimony. Baker retired earlier this year from the bureau and now works for the Brookings Institution, a D.C.-based think tank.
Gaetz, however, complained that the FBI general counsel present for the interview would not allow Baker to answer a series of questions about topics like surveillance of Trump campaign aides because it is tied to ongoing investigations. Lawmakers, however, said Rosenstein was one topic they discussed.
The joint investigation, derided by Democrats as an effort to discredit or distract from special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe, has been hotly sought by conservative members, who say there is ample evidence of bias against Trump among the top brass at the FBI and DOJ.
Baker is one of a handful of former FBI and DOJ officials who have met with the committee in recent weeks.
Nellie Ohr, Bruce Ohr’s wife who worked as a contractor for Fusion GPS during the presidential election, is slated to testify before the committee on Friday.
He can ask for Rosenstein's resignation. He can also ask for declassification of the FISA docs. He can demand Rosenstein to appear before congress. But none of that is going to happen. Rosenstein seems untouchable and as the article correctly states, Trump has said he has no plans to fire him.
What on earth will it take to get rid of this guy? If there's anyone on the planet who deserves to be removed from his position its Rod Rosenstein.
What on earth will it take to get rid of this guy?
A successful election next month.
A successful election next month.
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I don’t know about that. Anyone who can stick around like he has and get away with defying the congress and undermining the president must be holding some really good cards to survive in his job as long as he has.
He does have some good cards.
Trump could never replace Sessions or RR with the circus congress as it stands.
The special council Muledeer is just looking for a reason to call obstruction.
Border problems,elections, Mob violence.
Trump needs a new congress to back him up.
“House Freedom Caucus members previously said Rosenstein should either testify before Congress or resign from his post. “
Resign? Along with Jeff Sessions, RR is one of hundreds involved in this massive conspiracy of high treason. They’re ALL IN.
Trump is going to have to put his presidency(& by extension the fate of the country) on the line and clean house. Damn the impeachment torpedoes and gut the DOJ top to bottom-stem to stern. Gut our corrupt stasi state top to bottom-stem to stern. IOW, DRAIN THE SWAMP
What on earth will it take to get rid of this guy? If there’s anyone on the planet who deserves to be removed from his position its Rod Rosenstein.
*****************************************************************************
Wait! I thought Jeff Sessions was the one person who deserved this treatment more than anyone else.
.
Well, what do I know?
“Trump needs a new congress to back him up.”
He’s not going to get that...He’s going to have to call their bluff and start draining the swamp. If they go for impeachment, it will be go time.
You got a few of them right. I suspect there are some other face cards he’s holding.
Consider how much this guy has gotten away and Trump recently saying how much likes Rosenweasel. He said he has a “very good relationship” with Rod and that “I’ve gotten to know him and I get along very well with him”. This about a guy who plotted a coup against him and refuses to cooperate with the United States Congress.
There’s a lot more going on here than meets the eye.
He’s also says he gets along great with Xi Jinping and Kim Jong un.
I smell troll.
One big difference: Xi Jinping didn’t plot a coup against Trump like Rod did.
Give the troll crap a rest.
Don’t count on it:
Meet the new Congress, same as the old Congress.
Hmmm, I was told over and over again that the DOJ under Sessions was out to lunch, missing in action, hiding in the Keebler tree, or some such.
Seems like there’s something going on there after all, eh? #SilentExecutioner
Yeah, it’s called the Mueller investigation.
Oh, are you saying that Mueller is investigating the surveillance of Trump campaign aides?
So you’re saying Mueller is a white hat?
resign Rosenstein...and take Mueller and his dem operatives with you.
But wait! Some here, like jjotto, think that Mueller is investigating the surveillance of Trump campaign aides. That means Mueller is supporting Trump, right, and is investigating the whole FISA/dossier deception?
Someone is investigating the surveillance of Trump campaign aides, which can only mean investigating the fake FISA applications (see post #13), and jjotto insists it’s Mueller and not Sessions (see post #14).
So if jjotto is correct, Rosenstein and Mueller are good guys and must stay!
Uh, no. The FIB did surveillance of Trump, and Mueller is supposed to be finding charges on an ongoing investigation. FIB legal eagle Baker is of course up to his neck in bad stuff.
If there were some secret investigation, DOJ would not confirm it by calling the secret investigation ‘ongoing’.
Who said anything about a “secret” investigation? You’re making that up. The FBI lawyers confirmed it as an ongoing investigation. I will post the excerpt of the article again (emphasis mine):
...the FBI general counsel present for the interview would not allow Baker to answer a series of questions about topics like surveillance of Trump campaign aides because it is tied to ongoing investigations.
So, there is an ongoing investigation into the “surveillance of Trump campaign aides”.
My question is, who is doing this “ongoing” investigation? You said it was Mueller.
Descriptions of testimony are hearsay, as it was a closed meeting. Parsing phrases imagined by a reporter is pointless.
The only confirmed investigation into this whole area is Mueller’s.
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