Hirono Questions Top Justice Department Nominees’ Independence, Commitment to Upholding Civil Rights Laws

Senator Mazie K. Hirono, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today pressed Rod Rosenstein, nominee for Deputy Attorney General, and Rachel Brand, nominee for Associate Attorney General, on their commitment to independently investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, defend the right to vote, and uphold civil rights. The Deputy Attorney General and Associate Attorney General are respectively the second and third highest ranking positions at the Department of Justice.

From Senator Hirono’s questioning:

“With the most recent unsubstantiated tweet from President Trump accusing President Obama of ordering a wiretap, thank you Mr. Rosenstein for your clear no on your question of whether President Obama, on his own, could order a wiretap. Putin can do that, but the President of the United States cannot do that…It is not a hypothetical question. It is a question of law.”