President Donald Trump refrained from attacking former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions the entirety of the primary race. However, at 6:31 a.m. CST on the first day of Sessions’ U.S. Senate runoff with former Auburn University head football coach Tommy Tuberville, Trump broke his silence.
In a tweet, Trump shared a Politico article about how Sessions finished “well short” of a majority needed to avoid a runoff. In fact, Tuberville actually led the primary at 33.39%, with Sessions coming in second at 31.65%.
“This is what happens to someone who loyally gets appointed Attorney General of the United States & then doesn’t have the wisdom or courage to stare down & end the phony Russia Witch Hunt. Recuses himself on FIRST DAY in office, and the Mueller Scam begins!” Trump tweeted on Wednesday.
This is what happens to someone who loyally gets appointed Attorney General of the United States & then doesn’t have the wisdom or courage to stare down & end the phony Russia Witch Hunt. Recuses himself on FIRST DAY in office, and the Mueller Scam begins! https://t.co/2jGnRgOS6h
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2020
The runoff will be held March 31.
The eventual nominee will face U.S. Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) in November.
During the primary, while deciding not to criticize his former attorney general, Trump did hint at his approval of Tuberville’s candidacy.
In November, Trump said of Sessions, “He’s got tough competition.”
“I mean, you have the football coach. Tommy is doing very well. You have some good people running in Alabama. Let’s see what happens,” the president added back then.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn