White House aides this week told a senior Department of Justice official to prepare to replace Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein following reports that Rosenstein was ready to resign, according to a New York Times report.
White House chief of staff John Kelly reportedly told Matthew Whitaker, the chief of staff for Attorney General Jeff Sessions, that he was next in line to replace Rosenstein if President Trump fired his deputy attorney general or if he resigned.
Aides dropped the plan to bring Whitaker on board by late Monday morning, the Times reported.
Trump and Rosenstein are set to meet on Thursday in a highly anticipated huddle. The president, during a freewheeling press conference Wednesday, said it is not his “preference” to fire Rosenstein.