Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein stood by Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe Wednesday, despite a newly unearthed trove of damning text messages and other details that Republicans said show an “insider bias” on the investigative team.
Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller and has overseen the Russia probe since Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself, testified before the House Judiciary Committee -- and faced a grilling from GOP lawmakers.
They zeroed in on
anti-Trump text messages exchanged between two FBI agents who once worked on
the Mueller team.
“This is unbelievable,”
said Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, voicing concern that the "public trust"
in the probe is gone.
Republicans for weeks
have raised concerns that some investigators may be biased, citing everything
from their political donations to past work representing top Democratic figures
and allied groups including the Clinton Foundation.
But when committee
Ranking Member Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., pressed Rosenstein over whether he
had seen “good cause” to remove Mueller from his post, Rosenstein pushed
back.
“No,” Rosenstein said.
Nadler asked whether
Rosenstein would fire Mueller if he were ordered to do so.
“I would follow
regulation. If there were good cause, I would act. If there was no good cause,
I would not,” Rosenstein replied, doubling down that he has seen “no good
cause” to do so.
He suggested the probe
-- of Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible collusion with
Trump associates -- is being conducted appropriately at this stage.
But just hours prior to
Rosenstein’s testimony, the Justice Department released hundreds of texts
messages between two FBI officials—Peter Strzok and Lisa Page—who worked on
Mueller’s team and were romantically involved. Many were anti-Trump and
pro-Clinton.
In one exchange from
August 2016, Page forwarded a Donald Trump-related article to Strzok, writing:
“And maybe you’re meant to stay where you are because you’re meant to protect
the country from that menace.”
He responded: “Thanks.
It’s absolutely true that we’re both very fortunate. And of course I’ll try and
approach it that way. I just know it will be tough at times. I can protect our
country at many levels, not sure if that helps.’”
In March 2016, Page
texted Strzok, "God, Trump is a loathsome human."
"Yet he many[sic]
win," Strzok responded. "Good for Hillary."
Later the same day,
Strzok texted Page, "Omg [Trump's] an idiot."
"He's awful,"
Page answered.
The messages were given
to the House Judiciary Committee. The officials no longer work on the Mueller
probe.
Rep. Jordan said of
Strzok, "This guy thought he was super agent James Bond at the
FBI."
“We are now beginning to
understand the magnitude of this insider bias on Mueller’s team,” Committee
Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said in his opening statement on Wednesday. He
cited the “extreme bias” shown in the text messages between Strzok and Page;
Mueller investigator Andrew Weissmann’s “awe” of former acting Attorney General Sally Yates for defying President
Trump; and Mueller investigator Jeannie Rhee’s representation of the Clinton
Foundation. He also cited the case of another DOJ official demoted amid
scrutiny of his contacts with the firm behind the anti-Trump
dossier.
“Aren’t DOJ attorneys
advised to avoid even the ‘appearance of impropriety’?” Goodlatte asked,
calling the “potential bias” of certain career Justice Department officials and
lawyers on Mueller’s team “deeply troubling.” “DOJ investigations must not be
tainted by individuals imposing their own political prejudices.”
Rosenstein told
lawmakers that he has “discussed this with Robert Mueller.”
“It’s our responsibility
to make sure those opinions do not influence their actions,” Rosenstein said.
“I believe Director Mueller understands that, and recognizes people have
political views but that they don’t let it [affect their work.]”
Rep. Steve Chabot,
R-Ohio, pushed back, calling the appearance “sad.”
“Rather than wearing
stripes like a referee, the Mueller team overwhelmingly ought to be attired
with Democratic donkeys or Hillary t-shirts, not shirts that say ‘Make America
Great Again,’ because I think the American people deserve more than the very biased
team they have under Mueller,” Chabot said. “It’s really sad.”
But Rosenstein defended
Mueller’s investigation, stressing he has “oversight authority” over Mueller.
“I know what he’s
doing,” Rosenstein said of Mueller’s investigative actions. “He consults with
me about their investigation, within and without the scope.”
When pressed over
whether Mueller has attempted to “expand” the original scope of his
investigation, Rosenstein said that he had given his “permission” to Mueller to
investigate what he requests if necessary, noting that the special counsel team
“does have authority” to investigate “obstruction.”
“If I thought he was
doing something inappropriate, I would take action,” Rosenstein said.
In terms of any
potential “impropriety” in Mueller’s office, cited by multiple committee Republicans,
Rosenstein said he was not aware.
“I am not aware of any
impropriety. Special Counsel is subject to oversight by the Department of
Justice and I’m not aware of any violations of those rules,” Rosenstein said.
“Appearance is, to some extent, in the eye of the beholder. We apply the
department’s rules and regulations, and career ethics attorneys provide us
counsel on that.”
Rosenstein underscored
that he, Mueller and FBI Director Chris Wray are "accountable" and
will ensure "no bias" in the special counsel's findings.
Brooke Singman is a Politics Reporter for Fox News.
Follow her on Twitter at @brookefoxnews
