White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday declined to provide assurances that President Trump will allow the Russia probe to proceed should Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein quit or be fired.
Pressed by ABC’s “Good Morning America” host George Stephanopoulos on whether Trump has confidence in Rosenstein, Sanders said: “The president has confidence in the system.”
“That’s not what I asked,” Stephanopoulos responded.
“I’m not going to get ahead of the conversation that’s going to take place, certainly he wants things to take place,” Sanders said of Trump’s expected showdown Thursday with Rosenstein, who oversees special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe.
“There have been a number of incidents that have caused a great deal of concern, not just to the president but to Americans all over the country,” she added.
Sanders reiterated her view that Mueller should soon wrap up his investigation into Russian meddling in the US election, possible collusion with Trump’s campaign and whether Trump obstructed justice by axing FBI Director James Comey.
“I’m not going to get ahead of where the president is but he has been very clear he wants this to come to a conclusion,” Sanders said.
“We expect that it should and, again, they’ve spent a year and a half and found nothing that has anything to do with this president because there was nothing,” she added in response to Stephanopoulos pointing out that Mueller’s probe has resulted in several convictions.
On Monday, Trump attorneys Jay Sekulow and Rudy Giuliani called for Mueller’s probe — which Trump has long called a “hoax” and a “witch hunt” — to be put on hold if Rosenstein gets the boot.
Rosenstein remains the deputy attorney general after a chaotic day Monday, when contradictory reports emerged about his demise after he reportedly spoke of wearing a wire to record the president and mentioned invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office.
Meanwhile, the president’s Republican congressional allies called on Rosenstein — who has denied the allegation — to testify under oath before Congress this week about what he said.
“You can’t have the number two official at the Department of Justice making comments about wiring the President and not address it,” House Freedom Caucus leader Mark Meadows tweeted.
“Rod Rosenstein must come before Congress this week, under oath, and tell the truth about his alleged statements.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, said he and Meadows were considering an impeachment vote on Rosenstein.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate to joke about taking an action against the institution of the presidency while you’re overseeing an investigation,” Gaetz told CNN, adding that it was “probably” a fireable offense even if meant in jest.
“Rod Rosenstein’s impeachment can be brought up for a vote by any member of Congress at this point. It lights a two-day fuse,” Gaetz added.
“If we don’t get these answers under oath, we may invoke that vote to keep the Congress in town so we can get to the bottom of this.”
Democrats, on the other hand, warned that Rosenstein’s ouster would threaten Mueller’s probe.
“The last thing our nation needs is a slow motion Saturday Night Massacre, by which the President engineers the firing of Justice Department officials charged with supervising the special counsel investigation,” New York Rep. Jerry Nadler, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said in a statement.
