The Department of Justice has a new assistant attorney general, Brian Benczkowski. He’ll be in charge of the Criminal Division, a.k.a. the folks who handle criminal cases over public corruption, financial fraud, computer hacking, and drug trafficking, among others. The Senate confirmation vote was 51-49, with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) siding with Republicans, still missing one of their number as Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) remains home.
You’d think that a background in criminal law, or at least in federal courts, would be helpful to the head of the Criminal Division. Not Benczkowski. He reassured senators that being “head of the criminal division in the first instance is principally a management and leadership job." He cited other, unrelated jobs within DOJ and promised they’d taught him “how important it is to consult and listen to the career lawyers in the department."
So what are Benczkowski’s career highlights? He was a lead staffer to Attorney General Jeff Sessions pre-Trump, he headed the Trump transition team at DOJ, and, then, while in the private sector, he represented Russia-based Alfa Bank. That’s the bank that first came to national attention when potential computer server links between Alfa and the Trump Organization came to light, sparking an FBI investigation.
Despite saying he would not have represented Alfa Bank if he’d known he’d be nominated to oversee DOJ’s criminal cases, Benczkowski refused to say he’d recuse himself from matters related to the Mueller investigation. That’s nuts. Benczkowski could substantially affect Mueller’s investigation, as Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) confirmed with Stephen Boyd, head of DOJ’s Office of Legislative Affairs.
Boyd’s letter noted that the Criminal Division chief “has no supervisory role with respect to the special counsel. . . . However, it is possible that the SCO [special counsel’s office] will seek approvals from the Criminal Division as required by statute, regulation, or policy, or may simply want to consult with subject-matter experts in the Criminal Division as appropriate in the normal course of department investigations.”
The only checks on Benczkowski’s meddling are Benczkowski himself and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who remains Mueller’s direct boss. It’s up to Benczkowski, Boyd said, to seek out ethics experts before participating in or supervising interactions between Mueller and the Criminal Division. The honor system hasn’t exactly worked under this administration.