Legal Sessions sends off Rosenstein: He did ‘what he thought was best for this country’

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was ousted after President Donald Trump spent more than a year complaining about the Russia probe, on Thursday praised Rod Rosenstein’s handling of that investigation at a farewell ceremony for his former deputy.

Rosenstein is leaving the Justice Department in the wake of the 22-month special counsel probe, which dominated much of his unusually high-profile tenure as DOJ’s No. 2.


“It was no little matter. There was a continual uproar. Decisions had to be made, and those decisions fell to him and him alone,” said Sessions, who as attorney general recused himself from investigations related to Trump after being involved in his campaign, leaving Rosenstein in charge of the matter — and drawing the president’s ire. After months of withering criticism from Trump, Sessions left his post last year.

“He made every decision based on what he thought was best for this country,” Sessions said of Rosenstein. “He stayed the course during some of the most difficult times during the history of the department.”

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Rosenstein handed off special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation earlier this year when Attorney General William Barr took over as Sessions’ replacement. In a controversial four-page memo to Congress after Mueller’s probe concluded, Barr said he and Rosenstein concluded the evidence uncovered during the investigation was not enough to pursue obstruction of justice charges against the president.

Barr, who has borne the brunt of the fallout related to that decision, also praised Rosenstein on Thursday. The attorney general reflected on his deputy’s career, recalling that Rosenstein worked under Mueller when the latter was assistant attorney general.

“Little did we know that we would be getting the old band back together again,” Barr joked.

The House Judiciary Committee voted Wednesday to hold Barr in contempt of Congress for failing to turn over an unredacted version of Mueller’s report. The attorney general joked that it “must be a record” to receive such a rebuke within 100 days of taking office.

Rosenstein faced criticism from both sides of the aisle during and after the investigation. Trump bashed the deputy attorney general multiple times while the probe was ongoing.

In remarks Thursday, though, Rosenstein did not dig into politics, instead emphasizing the importance of sticking to one’s principles.

“It is most important to follow the rules when the stakes are highest,” he said.

Rosenstein will officially step down Saturday and has not said what he plans to do next, though he told The Wall Street Journal last month that he hopes to start a new job at the end of the summer. The deputy attorney general has been planning to leave his post for months but held off until the Russia probe showed signs of wrapping up.

The Senate is expected to vote on Trump’s pick to replace Rosenstein, Deputy Transportation Secretary Jeff Rosen, in the coming weeks.

