Rumor Control: Rod Rosenstein Has Resigned

Test ticker

Monika Bauerlein,
CEO

Dear Reader,

The next few months are make-or-break for Mother Jones’ fundraising, and we need more online readers to pitch in than have been of late. In "It's Not a Crisis. This Is the New Normal," we take a level-headed look at the brutal economics of journalism, why investigative reporting like you get from us matters, and why we're optimistic we can grow our base of support in a big way—starting with hitting a huge $300,000 goal in just three weeks. Please learn more and donate if you can right now.

The next few months are make-or-break for Mother Jones’ fundraising. We need to raise $300,000 quickly, and we need more online readers to pitch in than have been. Please learn more in "It's Not a Crisis. This Is the New Normal," where we go into the brutal economics of journalism, and what makes Mother Jones unique and worth supporting if you can right now.

ZUMA

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.

Jonathan Swan, who is usually dependable, reports that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has verbally resigned. If this is true, it gives President Trump the opportunity to nominate a new deputy AG who will be a more reliable lackey. Since the deputy AG is the person who oversees the Mueller investigation, this could go a long way toward reining in the Russia investigation.

I think Brett Kavanaugh would be a great choice: he’s had a long career as a loyal Republican hack, and he’d have no problem crushing the Russia investigation if that’s what Trump tells him to do. After a bit of time has passed, Trump could then fire Jeff Sessions and nominate Kavanaugh as Attorney General to make up for losing the Supreme Court seat. What could go wrong?