If Trump doesn't fire Rosenstein - why?

[Drunken Irishman]

Why wouldn't he? It seems like now more than ever he has the type of support for cover. I get it would be bad optics but with a complacent GOP, and at least some reasoning on why he had to do it, as opposed to just doing it, why not do it?

What's their game plan here?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. You're assuming Trump has a game plan.

Trump fires people he thinks are disloyal. That's the only excuse he needs.

[Drunken Irishman]

2. I get that but why not fire him?

He literally got that excuse with the NYT, so, why not use it? Is he getting pushback from the GOP? Was this all a trial balloon to see how people would react to the possibility? I'm just confused as to why his staff wouldn't pull the trigger.

[Skraxx]

3. I Imagine Rosenstein Might Have Some Aces Up His Sleeve

For protection. He's got insurance of some sort against this. They wanted to fire him, he pulls out an Ace and says "You sure about that?".

If he's not fired today, I suspect it's because he did something to prevent it.

[Drunken Irishman]

5. Now that seems like a reasonable answer.

[Skraxx]

8. Yeah, He's A Smart Cookie and Was Certainly Prepared for this Moment

[lagomorph777]

13. Oh, that makes sense. There must be a ton of stuff that could remain "classified"

or could be included in Mueller's report. Trump gets to choose between the path to impeachment, or the path to banishment, humiliation, and ruin.

[exboyfil]

7. I think they thought he was in the bag

for a "resignation", but he refused to go into the bag.

The NYT enablers are going to have try harder next time.

[scheming daemons]

4. Because .... 6 weeks from election day.

The Blue Wave becomes a 50-foot high tsunami if he pulls the trigger before election day.

[Drunken Irishman]

6. Fair.

[RockRaven]

9. Trump would rather he resigns because of the Vacancy Act.

The AG job, the Deputy AG job, etc require Senate confirmation. But if there is a vacancy due to resignation after a certain time period the President can put into the job someone who has been confirmed by the Senate for a different role in the administration, and bypass Senate confirmation. The President cannot pull that maneuver if the vacancy was created by firing, only resignation (a least that's what I've read elsewhere).

So if Rosenstein resigns Trump can eventually directly replace him with an incompetent lackey instead of a dutiful professional -- and Trump's Cabinet and their departments are full of hyper-partisans and mindless Trump-loyal cretins that would shut down Mueller in a heartbeat if made DAG. Trump can't do that if he fires him.

It is a big deal for the rule of law that Rosenstein not resign. We'll see how much fortitude he has, because Trump is not going to give up on this.


*Edit to add note: this is not based upon my reading the Act, but on what other's have written on DU and Twitter, and therefore could be total hogwash*

[dlk]

10. Firing Rosenstein Would be a Clear Case of Obstruction of Justice

[Corgigal]

11. He's just playing

his old John Baron, NY media crap. Worked for him for years. Again, cable news doesn't know how to wait until real answers are completed.

Trying to change the optics's. Cable news should know , by getting played so much during the election. Nope, and we need our own news media. Smarter.

[lagomorph777]

14. Axios will have egg on their face for a long time after getting played this way.

Their source will now be blacklisted.

[MiniMe]

12. I think it was a test balloon

After Comey, he may have learned about the optics of firings. It didn't do well, it will come after the midterms

[NewJeffCT]

15. Trump wants to make Rosenstein

sign some loyalty pledge or some BS like that, and to also explain his 25th Amendment comments, and humbly apologize for them.