Legal Ethics, Politics

Trump Pissed Sessions Conformed To Most Basic Of Legal Ethics

The honeymoon is over.

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Remember when James Comey testified that the recusal of Jeff Sessions from the investigation into possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign was “inevitable”? He testified:

Our judgment, as I recall, was that he was very close to and inevitably going to recuse himself for a variety of reasons… We also were aware of facts that I can’t discuss in an open setting, that would make his continued engagement in a Russia-related investigation problematic, and so we were—we were convinced, and, in fact, I think we had already heard that the career people [at the DOJ] were recommending that he recuse himself, that he was not going to be in contact with Russia-related matters much longer.

Sessions pushed back at the notion there was anything untoward about his behavior during the campaign, but the fact remains, the Attorney General pulled himself off of the investigation to avoid any impropriety. Recusals, such as this one, are an important way to build and maintain trust in the system. Public belief that a full and fair investigation has occurred is essential regardless if all parties are cleared or if there are eventually charges. Six-plus months into his presidency, it’s obvious — Donald Trump doesn’t value cornerstones of our system of government, and instead would rather a farce of an investigation as long as he controlled its direction. And it turns out, Trump is pissed that the course of the inquiry is out of his control and places that blame on Sessions’s shoulders.

According to a report from Axios, the recusal has transformed the relationship between the president and AG:

Trump’s top-line association for Sessions: The guy who showed tremendous weakness and caused tremendous problems by needlessly recusing himself from the Russia investigation.

Between the lines: In Trump’s mind, Sessions bowed to political pressure and gave an opening to his enemies (Democrats and the media). Trump blames Sessions, in part, for his Russia headaches.

Of course, this doesn’t mean Trump is backing away from Sessions’s retro agenda, but it does seem like the honeymoon is over.

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headshotKathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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