BTW:
Rod Rosenstein expected to leave DOJ next month
February 19, 2019
Deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein is expected to leave the Justice Department in the middle of March, numerous media outlets reported Monday.
Rosenstein has long been a thorn in President Donald Trump’s side for his handling of Robert Mueller’s probe, and recently re-surfaced allegations that Rosenstein discussed removing Trump from office had his boss blasting the deputy AG’s “treasonous” plot. But Rosenstein’s departure was expected after Trump’s nominee for attorney general, William Barr, was confirmed last week.
https://www.apnews.com/eddfd0c38e8a49c68660f8dc4095e157 Rosenstein to leave in March
Several news outlets reported Monday that Rosenstein would leave in the middle of March, according to an anonymous Justice Department official. It was reported last month that Rosenstein wanted to leave as soon as Barr was confirmed and that he had always meant to stay on the job for only two years, just long enough to help the new AG t***sition into his role.
A Trump administration official reported that Barr picked Jeffrey Rosen, the current deputy secretary of the T***sportation Department, to take over Rosenstein’s role, and an official announcement could come as soon as this week.
While Rosenstein is expected to step down voluntarily, the ordinary circumstances of his departure make for a surprisingly hum-drum conclusion to his rocky tenure as deputy AG under a president famous for firing unsatisfactory subordinates.
Rosenstein has long been a target of Trump’s ire over his decision to appoint special counsel Robert Mueller to investigate Russian e******n i**********e and alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Rosenstein made the appointment after Trump fired former FBI director James Comey in May of 2017, which followed on the heels of former attorney general Jeff Sessions’ recusal from the Russia probe over his involvement in the Trump campaign.
Sessions’ recusal put Rosenstein in charge of the Russia probe, and he continued to supervise it even after Sessions was fired in November and replaced by acting attorney general Matthew Whitaker, but now the reins have been passed on to Barr.
Trump has fumed against Rosenstein from time to time, occasionally lumping him in with other top FBI and DOJ officials he considers enemies, including James Comey and Andrew McCabe. In November, Trump retweeted a meme which depicted Rosenstein in a jail cell and said at the time that Rosenstein should never have appointed Mueller.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/418811-trump-defends-sharing-photo-of-rosenstein-behind-bars-he-should-haveBTW: br Rod Rosenstein expected to leave DOJ next ... (