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Citing Recusal, Trump Says He Wouldn’t Have Hired Sessions
The New York Times ^ | 19 Jul 17 | PETER BAKER, MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT and MAGGIE HABERMAN

Posted on 07/19/2017 6:14:34 PM PDT by SkyPilot

President Trump said on Wednesday that he never would have appointed Attorney General Jeff Sessions had he known Mr. Sessions would recuse himself from overseeing the Russia investigation that has dogged his presidency, calling the decision “very unfair to the president.”

In a remarkable public break with one of his earliest political supporters, Mr. Trump complained that Mr. Sessions’s decision ultimately led to the appointment of a special counsel that should not have happened. “Sessions should have never recused himself, and if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job and I would have picked somebody else,” Mr. Trump said.

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times, the president also accused James B. Comey, the F.B.I. director he fired in May, of trying to leverage a dossier of compromising material to keep his job. Mr. Trump criticized both the acting F.B.I. director who has been filling in since Mr. Comey’s dismissal and the deputy attorney general who recommended it. And he took on Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel now leading the investigation into Russian meddling in last year’s election.

Mr. Trump said Mr. Mueller was running an office rife with conflicts of interest and warned investigators against delving into matters too far afield from Russia. Mr. Trump never said he would order the Justice Department to fire Mr. Mueller, nor would he outline circumstances under which he might do so. But he left open the possibility as he expressed deep grievance over an investigation that has taken a political toll in the six months since he took office.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: agsessions; attorneygeneral; buyersremorse; lowenergy; recusal; sessions; trump; trumpcabinet; trumpdoj; trumpmueller; trumprussia; trumpsessions
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To: Kalamata

Curly Bill to make an appearance shortly.


101 posted on 07/19/2017 7:15:11 PM PDT by DAC21
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To: Phil DiBasquette
He wasted 3 months spinning his wheels and DACA, Clinton crimes, and voter fraud are still unaddressed

You are ill-informed. DACA is in the courts and is going to be ruled unconstitutional if there is any semblance of the rule of law in SCOTUS. There is a bipartisan voter fraud commission in existence with Kris Kobach as the deputy chair of the commission.

102 posted on 07/19/2017 7:16:33 PM PDT by kabar
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To: kabar
-- Sessions made the decision on recusal after he took office. --

Sessions was named in November, November 18. I don't recall any "Russia investigation" being on the radar at that point in time.

Sessions was asked about Russia during his confirmation (Trump faults Sessions for his answer to Franken), but I don't believe any suggestion about the campaign being under investigation had surfaced yet. At most, Flynn was viewed as "Russia dodgey," but Flynn didn't resign until Feb 13, weeks after Sessions' confirmation hearings.

In Trump's statement, he blames Sessions for not apprising Trump that Sessions was bound to recuse - that Sessions' omission was "unfair -- and that's a mild word."

103 posted on 07/19/2017 7:16:44 PM PDT by Cboldt
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To: gaijin

LoL! Great comparison pics!


104 posted on 07/19/2017 7:17:33 PM PDT by octex
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To: doug from upland
When he took the job, he had no idea he was going to have to recuse himself.

Doug you know he did not have to recuse himself, there was no law or rule that required him to, anymore than the Lesbian wing of the Supreme Court recused them self on gay marriage.

Can you name a time when Democrats backed down when they were in charge?

105 posted on 07/19/2017 7:17:47 PM PDT by itsahoot (As long as there is money to be divided, there will be division.)
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To: SkyPilot
I have a theory

From wikipedia

He was born in Selma, Alabama, on December 24, 1946,[1] the son of Jefferson Beauregard Sessions, Jr., and the former Abbie Powe.[2] He was named after his father, who was named after his grandfather, who was named after Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America,[3] and P. G. T. Beauregard, the Confederate general who oversaw the bombardment of Fort Sumter, starting the American Civil War.

So the ultimate redneck Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III had two choices. Support Donald J Trump, the ultimate YANKEE or choose the cushy swamp that he's been living in for 20 years. Hmmm, what's a good ole boy of the grand ole party to do????

106 posted on 07/19/2017 7:18:04 PM PDT by Pollard (TRUMP 2016)
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To: kabar
He consulted with the DOJ legal ethics committee that recommended he recuse himself.

You mean same the DOJ lawyers and employees who former Speaker New Gingrich said contributed 97% of their political dollars to Hillary's campaign?

The same DOJ "ethics committee" who said not a word about Holder's Contempt of Congress, or Lynch's clear violation of the law by protecting Hillary?

Come on.

If Sessions blew over that easily, no wonder he isn't up to the job.

107 posted on 07/19/2017 7:19:03 PM PDT by SkyPilot ("I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6)
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To: itsahoot

He has been a very effective AG in only the four months he has been on board.


108 posted on 07/19/2017 7:19:24 PM PDT by kabar
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To: kabar
If Sessions resigned tomorrow, we'd end up with one of the two scenarios unfolding:

1. Nobody worth a damn has any interest in taking the job, due to an aversion to working in such a stressful, unpredictable environment with an uncertain future.

2. Some "acting AG" loser fills the role for months in the meantime.

Can any of Sessions' detractors fill me in on how this makes any sense for the Trump administration?

109 posted on 07/19/2017 7:19:35 PM PDT by Alberta's Child ("I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris." -- President Trump, 6/1/2017)
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To: AnthonySoprano
Remind me, how many Special Prosecutors were appointed during Barack Obama’s 8 years?

Amen. That says it all.

110 posted on 07/19/2017 7:20:04 PM PDT by SkyPilot ("I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6)
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To: kabar
The Dems have been hammering for Sessions’ resignation ever since he assumed office. They fear him the most.

The media and the Democrats got Sessions to recuse himself (quite easily), and now they are laughing all the way to the bank.

You know it, and I know it.

111 posted on 07/19/2017 7:22:29 PM PDT by SkyPilot ("I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6)
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To: kabar
He consulted with the DOJ legal ethics committee that recommended he recuse himself.

And considering the timing of when it all happened, I have no doubt everybody on that legal ethics committee that made the recommendation was a loyal servant during the Obama administration. Again, he comes across as naive. That he's got a solid reputation of conservative principles doesn't mean he's competent to wage the battles he's needing to fight at this level.

112 posted on 07/19/2017 7:24:03 PM PDT by Wissa ("Accidents don't happen to people who take accidents as a personal insult." - Michael Corleone)
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To: Cboldt
In Trump's statement, he blames Sessions for not apprising Trump that Sessions was bound to recuse - that Sessions' omission was "unfair -- and that's a mild word."

There were calls for Sessions to recuse himself for days before his confirmation hearing, from Dims and Republicans. It was in the news daily and it was a failure of the Trump administration that a chief of staff, or WH counsel, or Trump or Sessions did not call key people together to discuss the issue and make a team decision of what Sessions should do.

This issue was no surprise to anyone paying attention for days before Sessions did say he'd recuse himself. I think I'll start a thread about this tomorrow as so many either never knew, or have forgotten how this unfolded.

113 posted on 07/19/2017 7:25:28 PM PDT by Will88
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To: SkyPilot
Mr. Trump also faulted Mr. Sessions for his testimony during Senate confirmation hearings when Mr. Sessions said he had not met with any Russians even though he had met at least twice with Ambassador Sergey I. Kislyak. "Jeff Sessions gave some bad answers," the president said. "He gave some answers that were simple questions and should have been simple answers, but they weren't."

This is something I'd expect to hear from a crybaby loser. Sessions' confirmation hearing was six months ago.

Complaining about this now is the equivalent of an NFL head coach benching his starting quarterback in 2017 because he threw a terrible interception five years ago.

114 posted on 07/19/2017 7:27:45 PM PDT by Alberta's Child ("I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris." -- President Trump, 6/1/2017)
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To: Cboldt
Sessions was a major target of the Dems and Deep State. They tried to hang the bogus Russia charges on him. His two "meetings" with the Russian ambassador consisted of a meeting in his office with his staff present as part of his duties as Senator and an exchange of courtesies at a cocktail party at the RNC convention.

The FBI investigation of the Trump campaign began in July 2016. I don't know if Sessions was aware of the investigation until he took office in February 2017. I am sure that played a role in his decision to recuse himself. Again, he went by the book and consulted with DOJ's ethics committee, which recommended that he recuse himself since he was part of the Trump campaign. I doubt Sessions knew he was going to recuse himself until after he took office.

115 posted on 07/19/2017 7:28:11 PM PDT by kabar
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To: Alberta's Child
If Sessions resigns tomorrow, Rod Rosenstein takes over.

Not the best scenario, because Rosenstein is in cahoots with Mueller.

The Number 3 official at Justice is Rachel Lee Brand, who has very good credentials and who I think would be on the side of the President (imagine that).

Trump can also fire Rosenstein, and if Brand is not his choice, he can perform a recess appointment next month.

116 posted on 07/19/2017 7:28:15 PM PDT by SkyPilot ("I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6)
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To: DAC21

Who is Curly Bill?


117 posted on 07/19/2017 7:28:18 PM PDT by Kalamata
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To: SkyPilot

And Brand own’t swear a blood oath to Donnie either, so she would be gone after a couple of months.


118 posted on 07/19/2017 7:30:06 PM PDT by gov_bean_ counter
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To: Will88

Your recollections seem correct to me.

Here’s one:

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/10/politics/jeff-sessions-confirmation-hearing-expectations/index.html


119 posted on 07/19/2017 7:30:20 PM PDT by jjotto ("Ya could look it up!")
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To: SkyPilot
Recess appointment? In this environment? What kind of lawyer would take that job?

There's actually one person who would take that job in a heartbeat, and he's probably one of the last people most Freepers would want to see in the AG role:

Chris Christie.

120 posted on 07/19/2017 7:31:11 PM PDT by Alberta's Child ("I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris." -- President Trump, 6/1/2017)
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