Attorney General Jeff Sessions refused to say on Wednesday whether he was aware of a draft of a letter that President Donald Trump reportedly wrote arguing that James Comey should be fired as FBI director because of the way he handled the Russia investigation.
Trump reportedly dictated a letter griping about Comey and the Russia probe before the White House publicly released a memo from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein that argued Comey should be fired due to the way he handled the Hillary Clinton email investigation. In that draft letter, which Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) brought up in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Trump allegedly argued that Comey should be fired for declining to say publicly that Trump himself was not under FBI investigation.
Leahy asked Sessions if he was aware of that reported draft letter when he signed off on Comey’s firing in May. Sessions would not say, invoking executive privilege.
“I also believe it considers and consumes a possible communication for the President of the United States and the same privilege would apply,” Sessions told Leahy.
Earlier in the hearing, Sessions declined to say whether Trump discussed with him that he wanted to fire Comey because of what was happening with the bureau’s probe of Russian interference in the 2016 election, invoking executive privilege in that instance as well.
Isn’t the President the one who gets to claim Executive Privilege, not his subordinates ?
Yes, and this issue was put to Sessions last time he testified.
“Did the President assert executive privilege on question ?”
“Not that I am aware of, but he might at some point and so I’m not going to answer.”
Unfortunately nothing matters any more, and he gets to proactively assert privilege on behalf of the President without being called out for contempt.
I’m not able to watch the hearing, but I’m reading TPM. Does it seem that the only questions for which Sessions is asserting some kind of “confidential communication” or presume-he’ll-assert-it-later “executive privilege” are those questions that, if answered truthfully, would suggest or prove obstruction of justice?
This fucker really belongs under indictment for perjury, much less contempt. His continued role as Atty. General is a daily affront to the rule of law in this country. But, as you say, under the Repubs “nothing matters any more.”
Now you’re just being picky!