The currents of mistrust and uncertainty that have long plagued the relationship between the White House and the Department of Justice (DOJ) gained strength this week after reports suggested that deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein spoke with other government officials about collaborating with cabinet officials and wearing a wire to record President Donald Trump in hopes of ousting him from office by invoking the 25th Amendment.
However, since those reports first broke, officials inside the White House have reportedly voiced skepticism about the authenticity of the story, believing instead that the scenario was in fact planted in the press by allies of Andrew McCabe, the fired deputy director of the FBI.
Intriguing underlying allegations
Reporting from the New York Times indicated that in the spring of 2017, Rosenstein made a suggestion that he should embark on a plan to secretly record President Trump as a means of exposing him as unfit for office. It was further alleged that Rosenstein stated a willingness to recruit cabinet officials who could, in turn, invoke the 25th Amendment to effectuate Trump’s removal.
The story asserted that Rosenstein made these explosive remarks in meetings with officials from the FBI and the Justice Department shortly after the firing of James Comey. It was reported that the individuals describing the conversations obtained their knowledge of the events from briefings and memos produced by other agency officials, including McCabe.
Adding fuel to the fire generated by this report is the claim that Rosenstein informed McCabe that he might specifically have the ability to convince Attorney General Jeff Sessions and then-Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to launch the 25th Amendment removal process against Trump.
Rosenstein denies NYT’s characterization of events
For his part, Rosenstein has issued a vigorous denial of the accusations contained in the New York Times story, calling the piece “inaccurate and factually incorrect.” He added that he would provide no additional comment on a story that cited only anonymous sources with a clear bias against the Justice Department.
Further, Rosenstein made it clear that based on his personal interactions with President Trump, he sees no basis whatsoever for invocation of the 25th Amendment to remove him from office. In a subsequent statement, Rosenstein flatly denied pursuing any recording of the president or advocating for his removal.
Simply sarcasm?
Though the New York Times story paints a picture of intense palace intrigue designed to undermine a sitting president, insiders have characterized the remarks allegedly made by Rosenstein as nothing more than sarcasm borne out of professional frustration.
A former official from the Justice Department who claims to have been present during Rosenstein’s comments about wearing a wire told CBS News that while discussion of wearing a wire did indeed occur, the statement was made in a completely sarcastic manner and that it did not evince any real intention of recording conversations with Trump.
Subterfuge suspected
In the wake of what were initially jarring allegations, a growing number of White House insiders have come to the conclusion that the story is essentially a ruse leaked by Andrew McCabe’s camp meant to provoke Donald Trump into firing Rosenstein and igniting a whole new scandal for the administration.
It is thought that such an action on the part of the president would wreak havoc on Republican prospects in November’s midterm election, something Trump’s opponents would certainly support. McCabe, through a spokesman, has unequivocally denied any involvement in the New York Times‘ reporting.
[show_poll poll_id=853]
Opinion split on Trump’s next steps
Though it appears that many within the White House are of the opinion that the Rosenstein story was a plant by McCabe and his supporters, and that the deputy attorney general should remain in his position, there are other backers of the president who have expressed strong feelings to the contrary.
Fox News legal and political analyst Gregg Jarret pulled no punches in his assessment of the situation, calling for Rosenstein’s immediate firing in a Friday tweet.
Driven by vengeance, Rosenstein sought to secretly record the President. He must be fired immediately! Since a clearly biased Rosenstein has been in charge of the Mueller investigation, it must be terminated. This illegitimate probe has been tainted by corruption from the start.
— Gregg Jarrett (@GreggJarrett) September 21, 2018
Fox’s Sean Hannity, however, took the opposite position, imploring President Trump to refrain from firing anyone. He argued that by dismissing Rosenstein, the administration would be falling into a trap set by the “deep state” that was designed undermine the Trump agenda from within.
Considering Rosenstein’s status as the Justice Department official in charge of overseeing Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, the question of his continued employment is a potential minefield for President Trump. The ultimate decision regarding Rosenstein’s professional fate remains to be seen, with the White House thus far giving no clear signals in either direction.
555 Responses
Thank you ever so for you blog post. Much obliged.
Really enjoyed this article.Really looking forward to read more. Cool.
Wow, great blog article. Fantastic.
I loved your article.
Youre so cool! I dont suppose Ive read anything like this before. So nice to seek out someone with some unique thoughts on this subject. realy thank you for starting this up. this web site is something that is wanted on the net, somebody with a little originality. useful job for bringing something new to the web!
You are a very capable person!
Im obliged for the article post.Thanks Again. Cool.
Wow! Thank you! I continuously wanted to write on my site something like that. Can I take a part of your post to my website?
I really enjoy the article post.Really looking forward to read more. Much obliged.
Muchos Gracias for your post.Much thanks again. Really Cool.
I truly appreciate this article.Really thank you! Much obliged.
Say, you got a nice blog.Really thank you! Awesome.
Appreciate you sharing, great blog post.Really thank you! Keep writing.
Hey, thanks for the blog.Really thank you!
I appreciate you sharing this blog post.
Very neat blog post.Really thank you! Really Cool.
Thanks for the post.Really looking forward to read more. Really Great.
Say, you got a nice blog article.Much thanks again. Fantastic.
Superb post however , I was wanting to know if you could write a litte more on this topic? I’d be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Bless you!
I value the blog article. Really Great.
Say, you got a nice blog post.Really thank you! Want more.
Excellent post however I was wanting to know if you could write a litte more on this subject? I’d be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit further. Thanks!
Major thankies for the blog post.Really looking forward to read more. Much obliged.
Thanks for sharing, this is a fantastic blog.Much thanks again. Cool.
Very good written post. It will be useful to anybody who utilizes it, as well as me. Keep up the good work – looking forward to more posts.
Really informative post.Much thanks again.
Looking forward to reading more. Great blog.Much thanks again. Fantastic.
Great, thanks for sharing this blog post. Fantastic.
Great, thanks for sharing this article post.Thanks Again. Great.
A big thank you for your blog.Thanks Again. Will read on…
This is one awesome article. Really Cool.
Major thanks for the article.Really looking forward to read more. Want more.
Im thankful for the article.Much thanks again. Much obliged.
Thanks again for the blog article.Much thanks again.
Thanks so much for the blog article.Really thank you! Fantastic.
Very good blog post.Really thank you! Really Cool.
Wow, great blog.Really thank you! Want more.
Great, thanks for sharing this blog article.Really thank you! Awesome.
Thank you for your article. Great.
I cannot thank you enough for the blog article.Really thank you! Much obliged.