The Day

Justice Dept. legal opinion backs acting attorney general

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Washington — The Justice Department on Wednesday released an internal legal opinion supporting the legality of Matthew Whitaker’s appointmen­t as acting attorney general as Democrats press the case that President Donald Trump violated the law and Constituti­on by making Whitaker the country’s chief law enforcemen­t officer.

The 20-page opinion from the Office of Legal Counsel, which provides advice to executive branch agencies, aims to rebut mounting complaints that Trump illegally sidesteppe­d procedure by appointing Whitaker over Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Rosenstein, the second-ranking Justice Department official, has been confirmed by the Senate and had been overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigat­ion. Whitaker had been chief of staff to now-ousted Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a job that didn’t require Senate confirmati­on. He became acting attorney general when Sessions was forced out on Nov. 7 and was given oversight of Mueller’s inquiry.

Since then, the state of Maryland has challenged Whitaker’s appointmen­t, arguing that the top Justice Department job must be held by a Senate-confirmed official such as Rosenstein. A defense lawyer in Las Vegas is similarly arguing that a drug case involving his client should be halted if Whitaker was improperly appointed to lead the department.

Congressio­nal Democrats, meanwhile, have called the appointmen­t unconstitu­tional and demanded that Whitaker recuse himself from overseeing the Mueller investigat­ion. At least two former Republican attorneys general, Alberto Gonzales and Michael Mukasey, have also raised questions about it, and a handful of GOP senators are urging their leadership to hold a vote on legislatio­n that would protect Mueller.

It was unclear whether the legal opinion would satisfy opponents of Whitaker’s appointmen­t, but the document does provide by far the most detailed defense from the Justice Department of a selection that has roiled Washington.

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