Mueller ‘is not an unguided missile,’ boss says
Deputy attorney general shrugs off criticism
WASHINGTON – Despite criticism from the White House on the course of the investigation into Russia’s alleged election interference, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein offered unqualified support for special counsel Robert Mueller on Monday.
“The special counsel is not an unguided missile,” Rosenstein said in an exclusive interview with USA TODAY. “I don’t believe there is any justification at this point for terminating the special counsel.”
The deputy attorney general, who is tasked with overseeing the special counsel, appointed Mueller last May to run the wide-ranging investigation after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself because of his contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.
Rosenstein estimated that less than 5% of his workweek is related to briefings or other matters involving Mueller’s investigation.
He dismissed the near-constant criticism aimed at the Justice Department from the White House and the conservative Tea Party Patriots group. An ad campaign by the group described Rosenstein as “a weak careerist” and suggested he resign.
“I believe much of the criticism will fall by the wayside when people reflect on this era and the Department of Jus-
tice,” Rosenstein said. “I’m very confident that when the history of this era is written, it will reflect that the department was operated with integrity.”
Confident in his job
Rosenstein said he felt secure but was pragmatic about his job.
“I feel very confident in my ability to do the job,” he said. “In any political job, you recognize that your time is going to be limited. My goal is to get as much done for as long as I’m here in the job.
“And when my time is up, whenever that may be, I’m confident that I’m going to be able to look back proudly on the work our department has done while I’ve been fortunate enough to be here.”
Rosenstein spoke about the Justice Department’s campaign aimed at reducing crime and pushing for harsher punishments in cases involving violent crime. He said the department responded to the priorities laid out by the president, “restoring” the authority of federal prosecutors and other law enforcement officials to bring homicides down across the country after two years of increases.
Rosenstein referred to the department’s effort against the scourge of opioid addiction. Justice recently pledged to pursue manufacturers.
“Most of the work goes unheralded and uncriticized,” he said.
Pressure after Comey’s dismissal
The deputy attorney general emerged as a central figure in the tumultuous first months of the Trump administration when the White House disclosed that Rosenstein and Sessions recommended the dismissal in May of FBI Director James Comey.
That month, Rosenstein announced the appointment of Mueller to oversee the inquiry into Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 election, igniting Trump’s bitter campaign against his own Justice Department.
The inquiry snared Trump’s former national security adviser, former campaign chief and deputy campaign chief.
Last May, Rosenstein called the appointment of a special counsel “necessary in order for the American people to have full confidence in the outcome.”
“Our nation is grounded on the rule of law, and the public must be assured that government officials administer the law fairly,” Rosenstein said. “Special counsel Mueller will have all appropriate resources to conduct a thorough and complete investigation, and I am confident that he will follow the facts, apply the law and reach a just result.”
Although Trump refers to the inquiry as a “witch hunt” and has assailed the leadership of Rosenstein and Sessions at Justice, the deputy attorney general has not wavered from his support of Mueller.
“I anticipated that this would be a lower-profile job.” Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein
“I can assure you that the special counsel is conducting himself consistently with our understanding of the scope of the investigation,” Rosenstein told a House panel in December.
“I think it would be very difficult to find anybody better qualified for this job. ... I believe that, based upon his reputation, his service, his patriotism, his experience with the department and the FBI, he was an ideal choice for this task,” he said.
Rosenstein acknowledged Monday that the work is difficult in the face of constant scrutiny.
He conceded that the public nature of his job, traditionally carried out in near-anonymity, was unexpected.
“I anticipated that this would be a lower-profile job,” he said.
Still, Rosenstein said he wouldn’t trade places with any of his predecessors, including those who served during Watergate and more recently during the 9/11 attacks in 2001.