Donald Trump finally forces US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign, ending a toxic relationship poisoned by Russia probe
- Their relationship has been strained since Sessions recused himself from the Russia collusion probe, creating worries that Trump may shut it down
- Matthew Whitaker, named by Trump as acting attorney general, previously warned that Robert Mueller’s Russia probe could become a ‘witch hunt’
Embattled US Attorney General Jeff Sessions resigned on Wednesday at President Donald Trump’s request, ending the tenure of a loyalist he soured on shortly after Sessions took office in 2017 because the former senator from Alabama had recused himself from oversight of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Sessions’ departure has long been feared by Democrats who believe that his replacement could be pressured by Trump to fire special counsel Robert Mueller and prematurely curtail the investigation.
Matthew G. Whitaker, named by Trump as the acting attorney general, will now take over from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in overseeing Mueller’s Russia probe.
Whitaker has gone on the record with his belief that Mueller would be going too far if he investigated the Trump family’s business affairs.
“This would raise serious concerns that the special counsel’s investigation was a mere witch hunt,” he wrote in an opinion piece for CNN last November. Whitaker said Trump was “absolutely correct” when he said an investigation of his finances would represent a “violation”.