AG allies: Let him down easy

Supporters of Attorney General Jeff Sessions expect him to be fired after the midterm elections and are lobbying President Trump to allow him to leave with dignity, a report said Monday.

They argue that despite provoking Trump’s ire after he recused himself from special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, Sessions (inset) has been a loyal champion of the president’s policies, including taking a tougher stand on illegal immigration and cracking down on MS-13.

“He deserves a graceful exit. His career deserves a strong conclusion,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told The Associated Press, adding that the former Alabama senator “has done strong work” at the Justice Department.

Ex-Cincinnati Mayor Ken Blackwell said Sessions’ allies have made the point to the administration that the attorney general deserves “more than a passing grade.”

“It is not unknown, from anyone from John Kelly to Jared Kushner, that there is a base of support,” Blackwell said, referring to Trump’s chief of staff and son-in-law. “A portion of that base is ready to continue advocacy for his service.”

But it’s unlikely Sessions will last long after the votes are tallied on Nov. 6 because the president wants to make wholesale changes at the Justice Department, officials said.

By dumping Sessions, Trump could pick a successor who would then oversee Mueller’s probe instead of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

A former Senate aide to Sessions said a Trump/Sessions reconciliation isn’t likely.

“The idea that this gets better — they stand next to each other and sing common praises — I just don’t see anybody looking at that seriously,” said the ex-aide, Cameron Smith.