Former FBI lawyer James Baker told congressional investigators last week that the investigation into Russian meddling during the 2016 presidential election was handled in an “abnormal fashion” and there was evidence of “political bias,” according to two Republican congressmen who were present for the testimony.
“This witness confirmed that things were done in an abnormal fashion. That’s extremely troubling,” Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) told Fox News. Baker worked closely with former FBI Director James Comey. Baker left the FBI earlier this year.
Perhaps most significantly, Baker corroborated reports that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein was serious about secretly recording conversations with President Trump, as well as invoking the 25th Amendment to have Mr. Trump removed from office. The story was first reported by The New York Times last month.
The 25th Amendment says a sitting president can be removed from office if they are deemed “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.” Rosenstein has denied the allegations.
“The New York Times’s story is inaccurate and factually incorrect. I will not further comment on a story based on anonymous sources who are obviously biased against the department and are advancing their own personal agenda. But let me be clear about this: Based on my personal dealings with the president, there is no basis to invoke the 25th Amendment,” Rosenstein said at the time.
Rosenstein is expected on Capitol Hill tomorrow for his own closed-door session with lawmakers. He is also expected to meet with the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), but details for that meeting have not yet been finalized.
Rosenstein was supposed to meet with President Trump at the White House but that meeting has been postponed amid uncertainty surrounding Rosenstein’s future in the administration. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders declined to comment on the status of Rosenstein’s job last week.
“If there’s a meeting, we’ll let you know. But at this point, they continue to work together and both show up every day and do their jobs,” Sanders said.
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