A group of Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives have drafted articles of impeachment against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein as a “last resort” to gain control over a damaging probe into President Donald Trump’s alleged ties with Russia.
Representative Mark Meadows, who chairs the House Freedom Caucus which drafted the articles, told the Washington Post on Monday that the document will be put into use only “if the Department of Justice fails to respond” to their requests.
Apparently, Meadows and other close allies of the Republican president have asked Rosenstein, the highest government authority overseeing the probe, to provide documents that outline the decisions made by law enforcement officials involved.
“My frustrations about their inability to respond to simple requests could warrant further action,” Meadows told the Post, noting that many of his colleagues were growing frustrated with Rosenstein.
The probe has been led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, a Democrat who once resided over the FBI. Rosenstein took authority over the investigation after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the inquiry in March of last year.
The articles are expected to stir conflict within the Republican establishment as many of the party’s bigwigs have asked Trump and Congress to let Mueller continue with his investigation.
This and unanimous support among Democrats for the probe would leave little chance for the impeachment document against Rosenstein to gain momentum in Congress.
The articles need to be considered by the House Judiciary Committee first, which has recently reached an agreement with the Justice Department over the documents that will be turned over. The committee’s leaders might throw out the impeachment if the documents are provided in a timely manner.
Trump does not rule out the possibility of Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. However, he has time and again expressed his opposition to the special counsel’s probe, calling it a “witch hunt” and a “hoax.”