GOP lawmakers to get look at secret Russia probe info

Trump won’t say if he supports Rosenstein

Washington — President Donald Trump declined to say Tuesday whether he has confidence in Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, escalating pressure on the Justice Department as his White House negotiated rare access to classified documents for his congressional allies.

Asked before a private meeting with the president of South Korea if he has confidence in Rosenstein, who is overseeing the special counsel’s Russia investigation, he asked reporters to move on to another question.

“Excuse me, I have the president of South Korea here,” Trump said. “He doesn’t want to hear these questions, if you don’t mind.”

The comments came just before White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced that a meeting to allow House Republicans to review highly classified information on the Russia probe will happen on Thursday.

Sanders said FBI Director Christopher Wray, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats and Justice Department official Edward O’Callaghan will meet with House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes and House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Trey Gowdy.

Nunes, an ardent Trump supporter, has been demanding information on an FBI source in the Russia investigation, according to the Justice Department. And Trump has taken up the cause as the White House tries to combat the threat posed by special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into potential ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.

Sanders said no White House staffers will be present at Thursday’s meeting. She said no Democrats were invited because they had not requested the information, despite calls from lawmakers for the briefing to be bipartisan.