Former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is scheduled to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday about his role overseeing the Russia investigation — his first public appearance before Congress since leaving the administration a year ago.
The scheduled hearing is part of the panel’s investigation into the Russian election interference probe. The Hill pointed out it puts Rosenstein back in the public spotlight.
“We have a lot to talk about,” said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., a member of the committee.
And Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said: “There’s been a lot of water under the bridge since he appointed the special counsel, a lot of evidence of FISA [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] abuse and improper use of confidential human sources to basically investigate a presidential candidate."
Republicans want to question Rosenstein on two issues — the surveillance warrant applications against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page and the appointment of a special counsel to take over the Russia probe after President Donald Trump fired former FBI Director James Comey, according to The Hill.
But Politico said some Democrats are questioning whether Rosenstein should testify at all with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has blasted Republicans, calling them the “conspiracy caucus.”
Chris Coons, D-Del., a member of the committee, said of Rosenstein’s scheduled testimony: “We’ll ask him probing questions about … whether he thinks it’s constructive for us to re-litigate this or not.”