Following Rosenstein’s Testimony, Sen. Cruz Slams Former U.S. Deputy Attorney General’s Negligence on Fox News’ ‘Hannity’

As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Wednesday I appeared on Fox News' ‘Hannity,' following my questioning of former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, where I condemned the Obama administration's abuse of power in targeting President Trump's campaign and administration.

On ‘Hannity,' I argued that both President Obama and Vice President Biden's weaponization of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the intelligence community against President Trump's campaign was "much worse" than the abuses committed by President Nixon:

"This was from day one a politicized partisan targeting of the President, of his campaign, of his team, of General Flynn, of Carter Page. It was wrong. It was abusive. Take everything Richard Nixon did in office that was wrong [and] abusing power, and by any measure, what Barack Obama and Joe Biden did was much, much worse."

I continued, noting Rosenstein's failure to recognize the politicization of the FBI:

"‘I see nothing, I hear nothing.' That was Rod Rosenstein's defense today. Essentially, he signed the papers in front of him. He said he didn't read the FISA application. He said he had kind of read it quickly but not every word. And he just took the FBI's word for it. So the fact that you had an FBI lawyer fraudulently altering documents, he didn't ask any questions. The fact that the Steele dossier had been completely repudiated by then, he didn't ask any questions. The fact that Strzok and Page were wildly partisan and he knew that, he didn't ask questions about that. The fact that the DNC paid for the ridiculous Steele dossier, he didn't ask those questions at all.

"Listen, the reason someone is put in a leadership position at the Department of Justice or the FBI, is to lead. And that means if it has been corrupted and turned into a partisan weapon, you got to ask the hard questions. And sadly, what his testimony today was is that he did not."

Here's what news outlets are saying about my line of questioning:

Washington Examiner: Rod Rosenstein 'not sure' if he read full Carter Page FISA warrant before signing it
"Cruz asked Rosenstein if he read the Horowitz report, and he replied, ‘I've read most of it.' The senator asked: ‘You just told Sen. Lee you read the FISA application - at the time you read the FISA application, did you know that the primary source behind the Steele dossier had disavowed it and said it's not true?' Rosenstein said he had not read the entire document, saying, ‘At the time, I reviewed it. I'm not sure I read every word, but I certainly reviewed it. And no, I did not know that.' The former deputy attorney general said he was unaware at the time that significant exculpatory information had been concealed from the court, that Steele's dossier was paid for by the DNC, and that FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith altered a key document, making it seem as if Page was not a source for the CIA when he had been. Cruz said: ‘Did you ask any of those questions?' ‘Well, the questions I would've asked, senator, would've been: Is the information presented to me verified?' Rosenstein said. U.S. Attorney John Durham is investigating the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation and the conduct of the law enforcement and the intelligence officials involved in that inquiry. Cruz also leveled criticism against the former deputy attorney general. ‘You came into a profoundly politicized world, yet all of this was allowed to go forward under your leadership,' Cruz said. ‘That unfortunately leads to only two possible conclusions: either that you were complicit in the wrongdoing, which I don't believe was the case, or that your performance of your duties was grossly negligent.'"

New York Post: Rod Rosenstein's admission exposed heinous plot against Trump
"Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) laid bare why the actions to undermine the Trump campaign should shock and dismay any American. ‘By any measure what the Obama/Biden administration did in 2016 and 2017 makes everything Richard Nixon even contemplated pale in comparison.' This includes propping up the falsehood-ridden Steele dossier, which was paid for by the Clinton campaign, clear violations of ethics by Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, and the FBI attempting to entrap Michael Flynn, who has since been exonerated. What is becoming completely clear is that the Department of Justice wanted to prevent, then destroy, a Trump presidency. These were not open-minded officials being led by the facts; they were manipulating the facts and hiding exculpatory evidence to bring down Trump and his associates."

The Federalist: Cruz Unloads On Rosenstein: Your Handling Of Mueller Probe Proves You Were Either Corrupt Or Incompetent
"When questioned by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein admitted that at the time of his involvement in the FBI's Russia investigation, he was unaware of the ongoing misbehavior at the highest levels of law enforcement. ‘You came into a profoundly politicized world [at DOJ], and yet all of this was allowed to go forward under your leadership. That unfortunately only leads to two possible conclusions,' Cruz said. ‘Either you were complicit in the wrongdoing, which I don't believe is the case, or that the performance of your duties was grossly negligent.'"

Fox News: Cruz slams Rosenstein on Russia probe, says he was 'complicit' or 'grossly negligent'
"Sen. Ted Cruz blasted former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's role in the Russia investigation during a tense Senate hearing Wednesday, saying he was either ‘complicit' or ‘grossly negligent.' Cruz, R-Texas, pressed Rosenstein on why he didn't ask more questions about the probe he once oversaw, which he described as one of the most important investigations at the DOJ at the time. Cruz described the Justice Department, upon Rosenstein's arrival as deputy attorney general, as ‘corrupted and politicized.' Cruz went on to list Rosenstein's actions as deputy attorney general with regard to the Russia investigation-including his May 17, 2017 appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel; his June 29, 2017 signing of the FISA warrant renewal for Page; and his Aug. 2, 2017, ‘scope' memo for Mueller's investigation."

Breitbart: Cruz: Obama, Biden ‘Much, Much Worse' Than ‘Everything Richard Nixon Did'
"Wednesday on Fox News Channel's ‘Hannity,' Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), fresh off former Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee, for which Cruz is a member, spoke about the lead up to the investigation of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. Cruz called it ‘wrong' and ‘abusive,' and laid the blame on former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive 2020 Democratic presidential nominee. ‘This was, from day one, a politicized partisan targeting of the president, of his campaign, of his team, of General [Michael] Flynn, of Carter Page. It was wrong. It was abusive,' Cruz said. ‘You know, take everything Richard Nixon did in office that was wrong, abusing power and by any measure, what Barack Obama and Joe Biden did was much, much worse. We know now that it went all the way to the top on January 5 of 2017 in the Oval Office - Barack Obama and Joe Biden both there, signing off on, aware of the targeting of General Flynn, the incoming National Security Advisor, and this was the day after, January 4, the FBI had concluded internally there was no basis to investigate or prosecute General Flynn because the evidence didn't back it up.' As for Rosenstein, Cruz said his appearance left much to be desired regarding his performance in his former post."

Newsmax: Trump Blasts Obama for Targeting Administration
"President Donald Trump is claiming that abuses in the Russia investigation make ‘Watergate look like small potatoes.' [...] The president, in his tweet, had attached a video of Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, being interviewed by Fox News. Cruz had said: ‘We're looking for the truth as to what happened. The documents and facts that have broken in recent weeks about the degree to which the Obama administration directly targeted the FBI, the intelligence agencies to go after President Trump and his campaign team.'"

Hannity: CRUZ MISSILE: Ted Torches Rosenstein, Says Either ‘Complicit' in FISA Abuse or ‘Grossly Negligent'
"Texas Senator Ted Cruz called-out Former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein over his authorization of FISA warrants against members of the Trump campaign Wednesday; saying either he was ‘complicit or negligent.' ‘You came into a profoundly politicized world, yet all of this was allowed to go forward under your leadership... Either you were complicit in the wrongdoing... or that the performance of your duties was grossly negligent,' said Cruz. ‘Was there any more important case the Department of Justice had than an investigation into whether the President of the United States is a Russian asset colluding against the United States?' he asked."

Mediaite: Ted Cruz Blasts Rod Rosenstein, ‘Corrupted and Politicized' DOJ in Senate Hearing: You Were Either ‘Complicit' or ‘Negligent'
"Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) went full throttle on Wednesday as he tore into the Department of Justice and Former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein during the latter's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Cruz hit the ground running by accusing the Barack Obama-Joe Biden administration of committing ‘the worst known instance of abuse of power' in America's history, and that it made ‘everything Richard Nixon even contemplated pale in comparison.' Cruz was referring to the claim from President Donald Trump and his allies that the Obama administration ‘unleashed, weaponized, and politicized' the DOJ, the FBI and the intelligence community against the Trump 2016 campaign."

Epoch Times: Rosenstein Would No Longer Sign Application to Spy on Trump Associate After Reading DOJ Report
"The former Department of Justice (DOJ) official who appointed special counsel Robert Mueller to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election said he wouldn't sign an application to spy on a former Trump campaign associate if he knew what he knows now. [...] Under questioning from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Rosenstein said he didn't know that former British spy Christopher Steele's primary source disavowed Steele's dossier, which was used as a basis to launch criminal investigations into the Trump campaign. He also said ‘I don't believe so' when asked whether he knew the 2016 campaign for Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee paid for the dossier. And he said he wasn't aware that there were exculpatory recordings of George Papadopoulos, another targeted Trump campaign associate, at the time he appointed Mueller as special counsel."

CNN: Rosenstein acknowledges problems with FBI's Russia probe but defends Mueller's appointment
"The inspector general report outlined 17 ‘significant inaccuracies and omissions' in the four applications for the Page warrants in 2016 and 2017, including the use of an opposition research dossier on Trump and Russia. [...] Republicans pressed Rosenstein to explain why he didn't ask more questions to uncover the problems with the warrant and verify the information. Rosenstein said it wasn't his role to verify but argued he properly reviewed the application. ‘I don't believe I was rubber-stamping, senator,' he said in during a contentious exchange with Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas."