If Trump fires Sessions, Rosenstein will probably resign. And then what happens with Mueller? Trump is heading down the path of the Nixon Saturday night massacre.
U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson had appointed Cox in May, after promising the House Judiciary Committee that he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the events surrounding the break-in of the Democratic National Committee's offices at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., on June 17, 1972. The appointment was created as a career reserved position in the Justice department, meaning it came under the authority of the attorney general who could only remove the special prosecutor "for cause", e.g., gross improprieties or malfeasance in office. Richardson had, in his confirmation hearings before the U.S. Senate, promised not to use his authority to dismiss the Watergate special prosecutor, unless for cause.
When Cox issued a subpoena to Nixon, asking for copies of taped conversations recorded in the Oval Office, the president refused to comply. On Friday, October 19, 1973, Nixon offered what was later known as the Stennis Compromise—asking the infamously hard-of-hearing Senator John C. Stennis of Mississippi to review and summarize the tapes for the special prosecutor's office. Cox refused the compromise that same evening and it was believed that there would be a short rest in the legal maneuvering while government offices were closed for the weekend.
However, the following day (Saturday) Nixon ordered Attorney General Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson refused and resigned in protest. Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox. Ruckelshaus also refused and resigned.
Nixon then ordered the Solicitor General of the United States, Robert Bork, as acting head of the Justice Department, to fire Cox. Both Richardson and Ruckelshaus had given personal assurances to Congressional oversight committees that they would not interfere, but Bork had not. Although Bork later claimed he believed Nixon's order to be valid and appropriate, he still considered resigning to avoid being "perceived as a man who did the President's bidding to save my job". Nevertheless, having been brought to the White House by limousine and sworn in as acting attorney general, Bork wrote the letter firing Cox – and the Saturday Night Massacre was complete.
I don’t think I said Trump should fire Sessions, I pointed out that Sessions should remove his recusal.
The mechanics of how the saturday night massacre came into being are interesting but for more damaging was the damage done to the people’s message. Driven by info divulged from a Grand Jury by a rogue FBI official who was pissed he got passed over for Director, the media and the dem Congress tied up the entire wheels of the executive branch for months if not years finally succeeding in getting Nixon removed over his apparent “cover up” of a third rate burglary of coincidently Dem HQ. Never considered was what was it they were after?
Just like now, there is a media mania to get Trump out of office, without regard to how this is damaging the country and halting his agenda all the while no consideration to how legally, morally, and ethically challenged his opponent and her party were and are.
kabar —
I truly appreciate your factual, and well reasoned responses on this thread (and others).
Sessions was indeed a prosecutor, and a very good one. He is incredibly faithful to the rule of law. His actions since becoming AG have been “by the book,” and not guided by passion or revenge. He removed himself from the election turmoil, as was proper under DOJ rules, and all states codes of ethics. He clearly would have the APPEARANCE of a conflict. He was/is maintaining the purity of any investigation. He will speak no evil of PDJT, that is a component of his character.
As to him prosecuting HRC, he took his orders from PEDJT, in November. It seems to this pilgrim that if PDJT wants to change his mind, he should announce it, and not push blame to others. PEDJT left no doubt that HRC shouldn’t be prosecuted. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/22/us/politics/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-investigation.html
I wish PDJT would be straightforward and reveal what his true desire wrt HRC is. Then AG Sessions could be a man and decide whether to pursue or resign. I believe he would be a man of integrity. I also know that there may be investigations ongoing, which have not been leaked to the press. PDJT may not be aware of them.
Again, thanks for your sane responses.
Gwjack
This is dumb because Trump is literally untouchable on Russia. There is no crime, no collusion, no deception, and everyone knows it. The Russian nonsense is mere political theater meant to help Democrats and GOPe in 2018. There will never be any impeachment.
The problem is merely a lack of will in the GOP and also a large number of subversives who hate Trump. These weaklings must be removed and Trump's enemies utterly vanquished and imprisoned for their many real crimes.
This fight is also political. It's about whose narrative wins. And we want our narrative to win to help us in 2018. The best way to help our narrative is to begin arresting government officials and members of congress. It would be the most beautiful thing we've ever seen.