“President Trump selected a superb team of skilled and principled lawyers to lead the Department of Justice and our U.S. Attorney’s Offices,” Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said | Win McNamee/Getty Images Rosenstein: ‘I think informing the American people is an important part of deterrence’

CHICAGO — Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein seemed relaxed on Thursday during a gathering of his legal peers here for the American Bar Association’s annual meeting. A standing ovation that lasted well over a minute might have played a role.

Rosenstein didn’t say a word about recent Republican efforts to impeach him. Nor did he utter the name Robert Mueller, the special counsel whose investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election he is overseeing.


But both issues hung in the air as the deputy attorney general spoke at length about the rule of law and the seriousness of foreign meddling.

He managed to sound sanguine while mentioning President Donald Trump, who has shown irritation at Rosenstein’s allowing Mueller to continue the inquiry for more than a year.

“President Trump selected a superb team of skilled and principled lawyers to lead the Department of Justice and our U.S. Attorney’s Offices,” Rosenstein said, adding, “Our decisions do not please all the people all the time — in case you haven’t noticed.”

The line prompted a roar from the crowd, along with more applause.

Those decisions “always reflect the care, caution and wisdom required by the law,” he continued. “That is what the president appointed us to do. It is what the Senate confirmed us to do. It is what the oath of office obligates us to do.”

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Rosenstein referred back to history, too, quoting former Attorney General Robert Jackson, who in 1940 faced what Jackson called the “unpleasant duty” of responding to congressional inquiries about law enforcement investigations. It’s a phrase Rosenstein has used before, but it still drew applause and laughter from the approving crowd.

In a Q&A session with the ABA’s president, Hilarie Bass, Rosenstein acknowledged the seriousness of Russian meddling in elections and propagating false news. The problem runs the gamut, he said, from fake accounts on social media to the hacking of candidates’ websites.

“It is a significant threat and we’re taking steps to prevent it, including the recent indictments that have received publicity,” Rosenstein said, alluding to charges brought against 12 Russian individuals in mid-July over the hacking of Democratic National Committee emails and computers. “And I think informing the American people is an important part of deterrence.”

“If you know what’s happening and you’re more aware of it,” he said, it’s easier to combat it.