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WASHINGTON – Convinced that Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein was ready to step down after declaring that President Trump was unfit for the position, White House advisers put in a replacement last weekend.
Matthew G. Whitaker, the chief of staff of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, would become the number two official of the Justice Department, his White House counterpart, John F. Kelly, told him by phone Saturday morning, according to two journalists . people informed about the call. For the White House, he was an obvious choice: a confident former university footballer and an American lawyer whom Mr. Kelly privately described as the "eyes and ears" of the west wing in a department that the president has long considered at war with him.
By the end of Monday morning, the plan was questionable. Mr. Rosenstein was no longer committed to resigning, at least without the assurance of doing so amicably with the President. Mr. Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he was ready to keep Mr. Rosenstein in place, and two White House officials said they thought he would probably stay in his position at the polls. least during the mid-term elections.
But the steps taken to promote Mr. Whitaker show how White House advisers seized days of uncertainty about Mr. Rosenstein to try to place a trusted loyalist at the top of a department whose Traditional independence has long frustrated the president. Mr. Rosenstein incurred Trump's wrath because he appointed a special advocate for the investigation in Russia, though, due to complex departmental rules, Mr. Whitaker does not take control of the investigation. investigation if he ever replaces Mr. Rosenstein.
On the other hand, Mr. Whitaker cuts the kind of central character that Mr. Trump prefers, and served as a "balm" to the White House's assistant on the relationship between the President and the Department of Justice. He frequently visited the Oval Office and would have an easy chemistry with Mr. Trump. On Monday morning, Mr. Trump himself called Mr. Whitaker, not with an explicit job offer, but with the assurance that he trusted him.
The administration officials also mentioned Mr. Whitaker as a possible successor to Donald F. McGahn II, the White House lawyer who plans to leave in the fall.
The Justice Department and White House spokespeople declined to comment. Back and forth between the White House and the Department of Justice have been described by more than half a dozen government officials and others familiar with the discussions about anonymity to describe internal conversations.
A native of Des Moines, Mr. Whitaker earned undergraduate, business and law degrees from the University of Iowa, where he also played for a Hawkeye team that participated in the Rose Bowl. .
He was then US Attorney for the Southern Iowa District from 2004 to 2009, and unsuccessfully presented to the Senate in 2014. Mr. Whitaker also has a connection to the evangelical constituents who have helped M Trump to join the White House. – During his campaign in the Senate, Mr. Whitaker said at a forum for Republican candidates that he was elected, he would ask candidates for the judiciary if they were "people of faith "who had" a biblical view of justice ".
Two months before Mr. Whitaker joined the Department of Justice, he wrote in a column for CNN that the finances of the Trump family went beyond the scope of the investigation of the special adviser, Robert S. Mueller III, to find out if Trump associates had conspired in the 2016 presidential election.
If Mr. Mueller were to investigate the financial affairs of the president or his family, "this would raise serious concerns that the Special Advisor's investigation was a simple witch hunt." Mr. Whitaker wrote in adopting the derisory term of the president for the investigation.
Leonard Leo, the influential chief of the Federalist Society's conservative legal organization who has taken time off to periodically advise the president since the transition, has recommended that Whitaker work for Mr. Sessions, according to a person informed about the heap. look for.
Heads of Office of Attorneys General generally interact frequently with the White House, but Mr. Whitaker's task was particularly verbal seizures of Mr. Sessions. But according to two White House officials, Mr. Trump liked Mr. Whitaker, who has the same behavior as the President likes.
Mr. Whitaker is skilled at cultivating allies, even in difficult situations, said his relatives. After losing to Joni Ernst in a five-step Senate primary, in 2014, Mr. Whitaker became one of his most fervent supporters and remains friendly with his former opponents.
"Matt can be competitive and then put it aside and build positive relationships," said Iowa Senator Jack Whitver, a Republican who worked at Whitaker's law firm. "He works well with great personalities. This is a good listener, which helps when everyone around him does not agree.
In meetings at the Oval Office, West Wing officials said Mr. Whitaker spoke frankly and authoritatively about the prison review, an issue accepted by Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner. Mr. Whitaker told the President that federal prosecutors would oppose some of the measures under discussion, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
Whitaker also took into account Sessions' comments, which have long included the department's mission in keeping with Trump's priorities, including immigration and violent crime, according to a senior official at the Ministry of Finance. anonymous Justice. He was not allowed to discuss internal deliberations.
"He has the confidence of many in the Department of Justice and the law enforcement community, but also in the White House," said Mr. Leo about Mr. Whitaker.
Mr. Whitaker's potential ascendance came late Friday, a few hours later A New York Times article revealed that Mr. Rosenstein had secretly discussed the recording of his conversations with the President and talked about using the 25th Amendment to remove him from office.
While Rosenstein challenged the report, relatives of the president said Rosenstein had privately told White House officials that the account could hurt him. Faced with the prospect of being called to testify on business at Capitol Hill, he told White House employees that he would be willing to resign.
Mr. Sessions discussed the possibility of changes with associates on Sunday, according to a person who spoke to him. According to Whitaker, White House advisers told him this would happen, Whitaker said.
Mr. Trump told his staff privately that he thought Mr. Rosenstein had denigrated him. But at a press conference Wednesday after attending the UN General Assembly, Mr Trump said he could postpone a scheduled meeting with Mr Rosenstein scheduled for Thursday. He added that he preferred to let Mr. Rosenstein "finish" the job of supervising the investigation of the special advocate.
But if he chose Mr. Whitaker as a replacement for Mr. Rosenstein's deputy deputy, Ed O. Callaghan, who would usually be the next Acting Deputy Attorney General, such a move would prove how much Mr. Trump came to do trust Mr. Whitaker.
As Acting Deputy Attorney General, Mr. Whitaker would oversee federal prosecutors, including investigations into former Trump's personal attorney Michael D. Cohen, the Trump Organization, and the father-run business. from Mr. Kushner.
The investigation on Russia would be overseen by the Solicitor General, Noel J. Francisco. But Mr. Whitaker could have visibility into the work of the special advisor. Officials from the Deputy Attorney General's Office met regularly with Mr. Mueller's team.
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