Thread by @rgoodlaw

Sen. @ChuckGrassley suggests we take comfort Trump did not actually fire Rosen.

NYT: "On Jan. 3, Mr. Clark notified Rosen that he would be taking his job at Mr. Trump’s behest."

If test is removing people, Grassley should not omit the removal of US Attorney in Georgia, BJay Pak

https://twitter.com/Mediaite/status/1424839207479037953

2. "White House officials pushed Atlanta’s top federal prosecutor to resign ... because President Trump was upset he wasn’t doing enough to investigate the president’s unproven claims of election fraud."

via WSJ's @aviswanatha @sgurman @cammcwhirter

wsj.com/articles/white…

3. Grassley reads from CNN report that Rosen and Donoghue told Senate investigators Trump "didn’t order them to do anything illegal.”

Goodness gracious -- he did not order them, he just threatened to fire them.

4. Grassley reads from CNN report that Trump "eventually accepted their advice that the Justice Dep't couldn’t take actions to claim fraud when it had no evidence of it.”

First, that proves what Trump wanted DOJ to do: take actions to claim fraud when it had no evidence of it!!

5. Why was it that Trump "eventually accepted" Department of Justice would not take those actions?

Because Rosen (and Donoghue) refused, and when Trump tried to fire Rosen and put Clark in as Attorney General, senior DOJ officials including at OLC threatened mass resignation.

6. Grassley then argues AGAINST congressional prerogatives.

He claims the Executive communications should remain confidential (and apparently with no exception for wrongful/potentially illegal behavior).

Even Trump's lawyers' letter to former officials gave up the game on this.

7. Finally, if you want a careful, thoughtful, top expert's analysis on the question of executive privilege and precedents for the administration's position, read @AndyMcCanse.

justsecurity.org/77610/unpackin…

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