“It has been 44 years since the Senate considered a Justice Department nominee who will be in charge of an active criminal investigation into a sitting president’s campaign and administration,” Leahy said ahead of Rod Rosenstein’s floor vote this week, alluding to the Watergate scandal that forced President Richard Nixon to resign.
“I hope that Mr. Rosenstein will do the right thing and appoint a special counsel to lead a truly independent investigation,” Leahy added. “One in which all Americans can have confidence.”
Democrats see mounting evidence of collusion in light of recent press reports detailing close relationships between various Trump associates and Russian agents. The Russian government tried to recruit former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page as a spy in 2013, and the president’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, offered political strategies to “greatly benefit the (President Vladimir) Putin government” as far back as 2005, according to press reports. Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security adviser, resigned in early February after he misled the White House regarding discussions with the Russian ambassador to the United States.
“President Putin’s goal last year was to undermine our democratic institutions — to corrode Americans’ trust and faith in our government,” Leahy said Monday. “If we do not get to the bottom of Russian interference, he will have been successful. And he will no doubt do it again.”
Rosenstein’s confirmation received broad bipartisan support Monday, with 92 senators voting to confirm him, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
Widely respected by members of both parties, Rosenstein will oversee the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s probe of potential improper contact between Trump and Russia. His role includes making the crucial decision of whether to proceed with any formal charges based on evidence presented by the FBI.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from making that decision in early March after The Washington Post revealed that the former Alabama senator had met the Russian ambassador twice during election season. Sessions’ contacts with Russia contradicted testimony he gave to Sens. Al Franken, D-Minn., and Leahy during his confirmation process.
In a Wednesday letter, 14 Democratic senators, including Leahy, urged Rosenstein to immediately appoint a prosecutor from outside the walls of the Justice Department “in order to ensure the fullest possible public confidence in the unbiased nature of the conduct of the investigation, the content of its findings, and any necessary actions in response.”
Department rules call for the appointment of a special prosecutor should involvement by federal prosecutors “present a conflict of interest for the department.” Special prosecutors have been recruited for some of the most politically charged scandals in American history, from Watergate to President Bill Clinton’s affair with intern Monica Lewinsky.
Congress used to be able to appoint a special prosecutor under the powers granted in the 1978 Independent Counsel Act. But since the act expired in 1999, only the attorney general — or a deputy in charge — may make such a decision.
During his confirmation hearings in March, Rosenstein made no promises to appoint a special prosecutor, despite needling from Democrats on the committee.
Leahy said he was deeply troubled by the Russian influence campaign in the election. “I cannot remember anything in my years here that has troubled me more than to have another country try to interfere,” he said.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., was the most aggressive in his demands that Rosenstein appoint a special counsel. With no such promise made, Blumenthal was one of six senators who opposed Rosenstein’s nomination.
