On Wednesday , allegations began swirling that Attorney General Jeff Sessions held improper meetings with Russian diplomats. Since then, the former Alabama Senator has faced a barrage of pressure to bow out of a probe into Russia interference of the November election. Now, some liberal Democrats are calling for Sessions to resign, and his former colleagues from Alabama are rising to his defense.
“I have every confidence in Attorney General Sessions,” said Rep. Gary Palmer. ” I do not believe he met with Russian ambassadors on campaign matters or that he intentionally mislead the Senate. I continue to believe that he will enforce the laws of the United States, dispensing equal justice under the law and recuse on matters when he determines an appearance of impropriety exists.”
Rep. Robert Aderholt also pushed back against the claims against Sessions, which he says are unsubstantiated and “becoming almost like the ‘birther’ issue of the Democratic party.”
“These allegations are nothing more than a partisan smoke screen to detract from the fact Donald Trump won the election fair and square,” Rep. Aderholt said. “It is like some of the Democrats counted their chickens before they were hatched and now have egg on their faces.”
Rep. Mike Rogers said that he has come to know Sessions as a man of integrity. He urged Democrats to “put America first and joining Republicans in addressing the many problems facing our nation, like constructing the border wall, repealing Obamacare, and rebuilding our military.”
New U.S. Senator Luther Strange, who was appointed to replace Sessions in the Upper Chamber, said he didn’t think Democrats “could stoop much lower” in their attacks.
“For eight years, Democrats turned a blind eye to serious breaches of public trust, but they did not miss a beat in trying to undermine President Trump’s administration as it gets to work cleaning up their mess,” Sen. Strange said. “Today’s attacks are ugly, and they are entirely baseless.”
Rep. Martha Roby said that Sessions is “already proving his critics wrong by following through on his commitment to adhere to the proper ethical guidelines with recusal.”
“In his confirmation hearing, Attorney General Sessions was clearly answering the question he was asked about Trump campaign surrogates’ communications with Russians,” she said. “I thought he explained that very thoroughly in his press conference, so anyone still trying to assign something nefarious to this just reveals how partisan their agenda is.
President Trump also said that he has “total” confidence in Sessions.
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