WASHINGTON, DC-Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday, March 2 announced he will recuse himself from any investigations related to the 2016 presidential campaign, which would include any Russian interference in the electoral process.
In a hurried press conference at the Justice Department, Sessions said he had met with department ethics officials soon after being sworn in last month to evaluate the rules and cases in which he might have a conflict.
“They said that since I had involvement with the campaign, I should not be involved in any campaign investigation,” Sessions said. He added that he concurred with their assessment, and would thus recuse himself from any existing or future investigation involving Trump’s campaign.
The announcement comes a day after The Washington Post revealed that Sessions twice met with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and did not disclose that fact to Congress during his confirmation hearing.
At that hearing, Sessions was asked by Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) what he would do if he learned of any evidence that anyone affiliated with the Trump campaign communicated with the Russian government in the course of the 2016 campaign, and said, “I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I did not have communications with the Russians.”
President Trump said Thursday that he has “total” confidence in Sessions, who has come under fire for not disclosing his contacts with the Russian ambassador during the 2016 presidential campaign.
