The Senate’s Russia probe will continue Tuesday when Attorney General Jeff Sessions takes the stand. Sessions will be the highest-ranking official to testify thus far. Since James Comey gave his testimony last week, attention has turned to Sessions and his involvement in the Russia investigation. While Comey was a man scorned, Sessions is still working for the Trump administration.
Questions about Russia
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York (D.) said that Sessions should be “forthcoming” regarding “unanswered and troubling questions.” There is no doubt that the Senate Intelligence Committee will be focusing their questions around Russia and Comey’s firing.
There have been vague reports that Sessions had a secret meeting with the Russian ambassador last year. The claims are mostly unsubstantiated at this point.
Previously, Sessions had told Congress that he had had no contact with Russian officials last year. However, in March, he acknowledged that he had met Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak on two occasions. Reports of a third secret meeting seems to have come from CIA intelligence that intercepted Kislyak discussing a private meeting he had with Sessions at a Trump event last April at the Mayflower hotel in D.C. The intelligence report remains classified but was reviewed as part of the congressional investigations into Russian attempts to influence the presidential election.
Sessions and Comey
There are also questions surrounding Sessions’ role in the firing of former FBI Director James Comey. The Trump administration has given numerous reasons for Comey’s firing. In his hearing last week, Comey testified that he believed the Russia investigation was the main factor.
“He had already recused himself,” Senator Jack Reed said of Sessions, “and then, suddenly, he’s the one apparently recommending to the President that Comey be fired…”
Schumer also had issue with Sessions’ recommendation to fire Comey, stating, “Recommending Director Comey’s firing would seem to be a violation of his recusal, and Attorney General Sessions needs to answer for that.”
Sessions is also likely to be asked about a conversation that Comey said the two had where Comey asked that he never be left alone with the president and Sessions “did not reply” in response.
The Justice Department has already denied Comey’s account of the conversation.
Sessions was an early supporter of Trump and helped develop the president’s immigration and law enforcement policies. Recently, however, Trump blamed Sessions for problems from negative reactions to Comey’s firing to the issues Trump’s travel ban has faced.
Trump took to Twitter to blame Comey for creating a “politically correct” version of the travel ban. Trump also reportedly was upset over Sessions’ decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation. Trump blames Sessions’ recusal as the causing factor for a special counsel to be appointed over the investigation.
