Trump forces out Sessions
Former AG’s chief of staff to oversee Mueller’s probe
WASHINGTON — Attorney General Jeff Sessions resigned Wednesday at President Donald Trump’s request, ending the tenure of a beleaguered loyalist whose relationship with the president was ruined when Sessions recused himself from control of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.
In a letter to Trump, Sessions wrote he had been “honored to serve as Attorney General” and had “worked to implement the law enforcement agenda based on the rule of law that formed a central part of your campaign for the presidency.” Trump tweeted that Sessions would be replaced on an acting basis by Matthew Whitaker, who had been serving as Sessions’ chief of staff.
“We thank Attorney General Jeff Sessions for his service, and wish him well!” Trump tweeted. “A permanent replacement will be nominated at a later date.”
A Justice Department official said Whitaker would assume authority over the special counsel probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election — though his role will be subject to the normal review process for conflicts. Because Sessions was recused, the special counsel probe had been overseen by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who also has had strained relations with Trump, but is considered safe in his position for the moment. Rosenstein went to the White House on Wednesday afternoon for what an official said was a prescheduled meeting.
Though Sessions’ removal was long expected, the installation of Whitaker
celebrating Republican Senate wins but distancing himself from the GOP’s loss of the House.
“I thought it was very close to complete victory,” Trump said, adding that he would “almost have to think about” whether he would have preferred Republicans to retain a slim majority in the House instead of their outright loss. Candidates who embraced his message “excelled,” and those who didn’t faltered, the president added, ticking off a selective list of defeated Republicans.
The president said he was interested in working with House Democrats but was ready to respond if he felt he was being ill-treated.
As long as Republicans have controlled both houses of Congress, Democrats have been hampered in pursuing any significant probes of Trump and his administration, and he made it clear he expects the Senate to follow that course.
“They can play that game,” he said of possible House Democratic investigations, “but we can play it better, because we have a thing called the United States Senate.”
On Capitol Hill, Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell said Democrats must decide how much “harassment” they want to pursue against Trump, while suggesting there could be limited opportunities to work across the aisle.
Pelosi, who is expected to run for a second stint as speaker when Democrats take the House in January, said the party has “a responsibility to seek common ground where we can.”
But she added, “Where we cannot, we must stand our ground.”
By turns combative and conciliatory, Trump said Democrats and Republicans should set aside partisanship to work together. On legislative prospects, Trump said he could work with Democrats on issues such as taxes, infrastructure and health care.
Some House Democrats have threatened to use the subpoena power they will gain to investigate Trump and administration actions.
But, he warned, he will respond in kind and government will suffer.
Shortly thereafter, however, it was announced that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had been forced out. His departure followed 18 months of criticism and insults from Trump, who had appointed him but objected to Sessions’ stepping aside from the Russia probe.
Democrats are expected to investigate Trump’s business dealings, his Cabinet’s conduct and his campaign’s possible ties to Russia.
Pelosi spoke with Trump and McConnell after the Democrats’ victory. McConnell said Wednesday the two had discussed how they might “find a way forward” in a divided Congress.
“The one issue that Leader Pelosi and I discussed this morning where there could be a possible bipartisan agreement would be something on infrastructure, but there could be a lot of other things,” McConnell said.
Trump was quick to distance himself from losing GOP House members who had been critical of his heated rhetoric, citing Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo and Colorado Rep. Mike Coffman, among others.
Trump’s claim that those who backed him were successful was not without exceptions. Republican Sen. Dean Heller of Nevada was defeated although he had embraced Trump.
The president’s rebuke was felt on Capitol Hill. Rep. Ryan Costello, a Republican from Pennsylvania who announced his retirement earlier this year, tweeted his displeasure: “To deal w harassment & filth spewed at GOP MOC’s in tough seats every day for 2 yrs, bc of POTUS; to bite ur lip more times you’d care to; to disagree & separate from POTUS on principle & civility in ur campaign; to lose bc of POTUS & have him piss on u. Angers me to my core.”
The White House news conference was also punctuated by Trump’s escalating attacks on the media. The president repeatedly flashed his temper as he insulted several reporters by name, interrupted their questions, ordered some to sit down and deemed one inquiry about his embrace of the description “nationalist” to be “racist.”
His back-and-forth with CNN reporter Jim Acosta over Trump’s hard-line immigration rhetoric grew especially heated, with Trump labeling the reporter a “very rude person” and saying the outlet “should be ashamed of itself” for employing him.
Following a lengthy and tense verbal back-and-forth, a female White House intern attempted to take the microphone away from Acosta.
Acosta held onto it and at one point told the woman, “Pardon me, ma’am.”
The White House suspended Acosta’s press pass, a move thought to be unprecedented.
On Wednesday night, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused Acosta of “placing his hands on a young woman” and said it was on those grounds Acosta’s press pass was being suspended “until further notice.”
On Twitter, Acosta responded to Sanders’ statement with, simply: “This is a lie.”