Attorney general Jeff Sessions faces growing calls for his resignation amid claims that he lied under oath when he was signed into his position. It has been disclosed that Sessions spoke with the Russian ambassador to the US in the midst of Trump's election campaign. In process, Sessions contradicted his testimony to congress.
Democrats call for Sessions' resignation
Chuck Schumer, the senate minority leader, spoke to reporters in Washington today. Schumer said: 'I believe that it would be in the best interests of the United States if Sessions resigned.
Admittedly, speaking to the Russians is questionable in itself. However, the biggest issue here is that Sessions lied to congress under oath'.
The Democratic House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, demanded consequences for Sessions' lies under oath: 'Perjury is a crime. There are consequences to these actions and the attorney general must face those consequences'.
Senior Republicans calls for Sessions to recuse
Although senior Republicans didn't call on Sessions to resign, they did call for the attorney general should recuse from involvement in the FBI's investigation into potential Russian interference in Donald Trump's election win.
Chuck Schumer stated that Sessions should be investigated by the Department of Justice’to determine if his contact with Russia has compromised the FBI's investigation: 'There can't be a scintilla of doubt about the impartiality of the attorney general'.
The news of these latest connections come after the media praised Trump for his address to congress. A spokesperson for Jeff Sessions confirmed that meetings occurred, but claimed that they weren't pertaining to the election.
During Sessions’ committee hearing on 10 January, he was questioned by senator Al Franken on what the procedure would be if Russian influence on the US election came to light.
The attorney general said: 'I’m not aware of any activities linking Russia to the US election. Before, I have been labelled a surrogate but I haven't had contact with Russia'. Today, Franken labelled Sessions' remarks as 'extremely misleading' before demanding that Sessions should clarify his comments under oath.
President Trump has backed the attorney general, stating that he had 'total confidence in the attorney general' during a speech to a military base in Virginia.
