Rosenstein Defends Mueller, Justice Department Amid Attacks About Bias

Updated at 1:33 p.m. ET

Republicans pummeled the FBI and Justice Department on Wednesday as they continued painting its special counsel, Robert Mueller, as the boss of a partisan fishing expedition rife with Democratic sympathizers that is out to get President Trump.

But Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein resisted the fishing expedition narrative and told the House Judiciary Committee that Mueller is not off inside a locked room hidden from his view, but instead is consulting with him about the directions his team wants to travel.

"I know what he's doing," Rosenstein said. "If I felt he was doing something inappropriate, I would take action."

The deputy attorney general also reminded the committee that he retains the authority to fire Mueller if he sees fit — but only for what he said is "good cause." Asked what he would do if Trump ordered him to fire Mueller, Rosenstein said he would evaluate that question on its merits.

"If there were good cause, I would act. If there were no good cause, I would not."

Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., cited hundreds of text messages between two FBI agents who reacted to political events last year with contempt for then-Republican candidate Donald Trump and support for Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

One senior special agent, who was a part of the Clinton email server investigation and then became part of the counterintelligence investigation into the Trump campaign and its potential ties to Russia, was removed from Mueller's team.

The two FBI employees "clearly let their strong political opinions cloud their professional judgment," Goodlatte charged. But that isn't all, he said; the presence of attorneys who have given campaign contributions to Democrats or made comments critical of the president meant the Mueller team has begun to "look more and more partisan."

Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, read what he said was an alphabetical list of campaign donations from people on Mueller's investigative team — one he said heavily favored Democrats.

Justice Department employees are permitted to make such contributions and to express their political views, which are barred by the department's official rules from being considered in evaluating their work.

But that is ridiculous, critics charge.

"How, with a straight face, can you say this group of Democrat partisans are unbiased and will give President Trump a fair shake?" Chabot asked. "I would submit the Mueller team ought to be attired with Democratic donkeys or 'I'm with Hillary' T-shirts ... and I think it's really sad."

Rosenstein defended the Justice Department and the FBI, as the bureau's director, Christopher Wray, did at a similar hearing last week.

The Justice Department is evaluating whether to appoint a second special counsel to look into some of the matters raised by Republicans, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has said. But neither Sessions nor Rosenstein have given a strong sense about what they might ultimately decide.

Wray told the House Judiciary Committee last week that the Justice Department already is doing an outside investigation into the handling of the case of Clinton's private email server while she was secretary of state. Its inspector general's office, doing that work, uncovered the text messages that Goodlatte cited, Rosenstein said.

Rosenstein told members of Congress on Wednesday to let that process move ahead before he and they decide what action to take, if any. The findings would be ready "in the next couple of months," he said.