WASHINGTON (CN) - Readying a successor to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will nominate a top official with the Department of Transportation.
Jeffrey Rosen, 60, was confirmed in 2017 to serve as deputy secretary of the Department of Transportation. Though he previously worked in the same agency as a lawyer from 2003 to 2006, Rosen more recently worked as a partner at the Washington, D.C., law firm Kirkland & Ellis from 2009 to 2017.
Trump's new attorney general, William Barr, came to the Justice Department from the same firm. The exit of Rosenstein, expected to occur in March, has been expected as new attorneys general usually have their own deputies.
It was rumored that Barr wanted to select his own deputy as part of taking the role of attorney general. Barr previously served in the role from 1991 to 1993 under the George H.W. Bush administration. Rosen meanwhile previously served general counsel and senior policy adviser to President George W. Bush.
"His years of outstanding legal and management experience make him an excellent choice to succeed Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who has served the Department of Justice over many years with dedication and distinction," Barr said of Rosen in a statement Tuesday.
Rosenstein became a national figure just a month within weeks of joining the Justice Department when he appointed Special Counsel Robert Mueller in May to conduct an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible collusion with the Trump campaign. Rosenstein made the appointment after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from investigations related to the campaign.
Barr is now in control of the investigation and vowed in Senate testimony that he will allow Mueller to complete the task. Rosenstein is expected to remain on with the Justice Department until the middle of next month to facilitate the leadership transition.
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