With Rosenstein expected to recuse himself from the Russia investigation, both Democrats and the White House are not going to like the next person in line to serve as acting Attorney General – the White House in particular.
Attorney and University of New Hampshire professor Seth Abramson has been publishing extensive tweets regarding the ongoing investigation into alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
On Friday, he published a series of 50 tweets detailing: “EVERYTHING you need to know about Rachel Brand—the Acting AG on the Russia case when Rod Rosenstein finally recuses himself.”
Before we get to his tweets, Politico provides some important background regarding the possibility of another shake-up in the Department of Justice.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has already recused himself from overseeing the investigation into possible collusion between Trump campaign aides and Russian operatives, after it was revealed that he failed to disclose meetings with the Russian ambassador during the campaign. And Trump started his morning on Friday [16 June 2017] by appearing to take a public shot at his deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, who has increasingly become the target of his impulsive anger.
“I am being investigated for firing the FBI Director by the man who told me to fire the FBI Director! Witch Hunt,” the president tweeted.
The Justice Department said in a statement on Friday that there are no current plans for a recusal, but Rosenstein has said in the past that he would back away from overseeing Mueller’s investigation if his role in the ouster of former FBI Director James Comey becomes a conflict.
As Abramson explains, Rosenstein’s recusal is inevitable in the wake of the Washington Post’s damning report that Trump’s under FBI investigation for obstruction of justice.
“As soon as we discovered Mueller was investigating Trump for Obstruction of Justice, we *knew* Rosenstein would have to recuse himself. Rosenstein is—with Sessions and Comey—one of three indispensable witnesses in the Obstruction case on Trump, so he *can’t* prosecute it. This claim—made by scores of attorneys (me and many many others) as soon as news of the Obstruction case broke—has now been *confirmed*. Yesterday Sen. Blumenthal (Senate Judiciary Committee) said that Rosenstein would recuse; today ABC reports Rosenstein is saying so too.”
Continuing, Abramson writes:
“That means Rachel Brand—the #3 attorney at the DOJ—will shortly become the Acting AG with respect to *all* matters in the Russia probe. Brand is a well-educated and very experienced attorney—but her role at the head of the Russia probe will *immediately* be controversial.”
Abramson believes this will be of concern to Democrats:
“[W]e should note that while nearly *every* Democrat voted for Rosenstein’s confirmation, not a *single one* voted for Rachel Brand. That’s partly because of her ultra-conservative reputation—conservatives call her (as a compliment) the ‘Federalist Society Prom Queen.’ As a former litigator at the Chamber of Commerce, she also has a long history of defending the powerful when they seek to harm the weak.”
Abramson also notes that both Democrats and the White House are likely to have grave concerns regarding Brand’s connection with Jared Kushner’s attorney, Jamie Gorelick, who also happens to be a “former co-worker—and apparently friend and mentor—to Brand,” and “As a known—or, between potential and definite—target of the Russia probe, Kushner would ultimately be prosecuted, if at all, by Brand.”
However, Brand may very likely turn out to be Trump’s worst nightmare to head the DOJ due to her long-standing and close friendship with Texas Senator Ted Cruz.
As Abramson explains:
“It’s no secret Trump *hates* Ted Cruz—and that a major reason he hates him is Cruz originally intended to STEAL the GOP nom at the RNC. *Long* after Trump clinched the nomination, Cruz was plotting a party-wide revolution at the July 2016 Republican National Convention.
“Low on money—and low on allies—Cruz ultimately refused to endorse Trump at the RNC, hoping delegates would cast votes for him, instead. It now appears that—during the height of his anti-Trump revolution—Cruz received a maximum donation from his good friend Rachel Brand.”
(32) It now appears that—during the height of his anti-Trump revolution—Cruz received a maximum donation from his good friend Rachel Brand. pic.twitter.com/jP9LA8YzUR
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 16, 2017
“Because Cruz almost *certainly* plans to be Trump’s top challenger in 2020—*if* Trump is still the POTUS—Trump won’t like this at all. Not to impugn Brand’s integrity at all—but objectively speaking one can *almost* understand Trump’s paranoia in this sort of situation. As the lead DOJ prosecutor in any Obstruction allegation against Trump, Brand could help clear the 2020 field for her good friend Cruz.
“Indeed, if Brand refers a strong Obstruction case to the Judiciary Committee, no American politician benefits MORE than her friend Ted. It’d be *out of character* for Trump *not* to note and complain about this—and perhaps even to attempt to fire Brand for her conflict.”
For those interested in a bit more background on Abramson, his official bio reads in part:
Seth is regularly interviewed about politics and higher education by domestic and International media. Recent interviews include the BBC, CNN, NPR, PBS, ABC Radio, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Chronicle of Higher Education, New York Magazine, and The New England Review of Books. Seth’s essays have also been widely cited, including discussions on CNBC, PBS, FNC, BET, and NPR, as well as in Politico, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Los Angeles Times, The New Yorker, The Chicago Tribune, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy, Slate, and Pitchfork.
You can watch Abramson debating the Russia scandal with a Trump supporter on CNN in the clip, below:
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