Watch: Body Language Expert Savages Rosenstein: He's 'My Favorite Kind of Liar'
When it comes time to write his “How I spent my summer vacation” paper at the Department of Justice, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein probably isn’t going to have the happiest tale to tell.
Rosenstein, as you may have heard, has been taken to task for repeated failure to turn over documents related to the Hillary Clinton email investigation, political bias within the FBI and DOJ, and the slow pace of the Trump-Russia investigation.
After threats of impeachment, this all culminated in a rather dramatic session before Congress at the end of June, which didn’t go so well for Rosenstein. Now, he’s even got a body language expert criticizing the truthfulness of the answers he gave on Capitol Hill, calling Rosenstein “my favorite” kind of “liar.”
In a viral video posted late last month, just after Rosenstein’s testimony, YouTube body-language expert Mandy Bombard, the “Body Language Ghost,” criticized Rosenstein, saying that he was evasive in his answers about pretty much everything.
The “favorite” remark came after one particularly smarmy section by Rosenstein in which he took on the mien of a shady car dealer trying to sell you on the sport package.
“I want to assure you — the American people — we’re not withholding anything embarrassing,” Rosenstein said about the 12:35 mark, regarding some of the text messages between Peter Strzok and Lisa Page that hadn’t been revealed until they were included in the inspector general’s report.
“We’re not withholding anything embarrassing!” the Ghost says, mocking Rosenstein’s tone.
“I’m looking at you from the side of my head, I’m smiling at you while I’m lying to you. Those are my favorite liars — when they smile and lie to you — and then talks with the Muppet hands,” she added, remarking on Rosenstein’s hand movements.
Rep. Ron DeSantis, a Florida Republican, then questioned Rosenstein on why the inspector general was able to find the texts and he wasn’t, during which Rosenstein’s eyes seem to be darting all over the place for no apparent reason. However, the Body Language Ghost says DeSantis makes a critical mistake.
“You’re seeing him search through his brain right now,” the Ghost says. “He’s not listening. He’s looking for an out. DeSantis gave him a little bit of an out — ‘Maybe it was deleted, maybe you didn’t see it.’ DeSantis, never give someone who disrespects you an out unless it’s advantageous for a further-down-the-road victory.”
Rosenstein, meanwhile, keeps smiling throughout his answers, insisting that nothing untoward was happening.
Further down the road, the expert criticizes his response to DeSantis’ suggestion that perhaps Rosenstein ought to have recused himself from the investigation.
“Congressman, I can assure you that, were it appropriate for me to recuse, I’d be more than happy to do so and let someone else handle it,” Rosenstein said — still smiling, and with a laugh this time.
“‘I’d be more than happy,’ and he’s bouncing up and down,” the Body Language Ghost says.
“The same eye-rolling smile. ‘If it were appropriate,'” she says, mockingly.
There’s a lot of good stuff in this video, and if you have a good chunk of time to sit down and watch it, I thoroughly encourage you to. The point is that Rosenstein’s behavior before Congress wasn’t just smarmy, it was all tells for lying — particularly his smiling and looking away.
Rosenstein’s testimony was infuriating for plenty of reasons. Thankfully, there were plenty of congressmen there who were willing to hold him to account.
If only there had been a body language expert present, too. That would have made the “How I spent my summer vacation paper” even more interesting.
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