March 02, 2017 02:07 PM UTC

Sessions Snared In Russiagate, Gardner Defends "Jeff"--For Now

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE #4: Attorney General Jeff Sessions recuses himself from any investigation into the 2016 presidential elections as questions about his testimony continue.

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UPDATE #3: Looks like Sen. Cory Gardner may have finally realized this is a problem, but still no call even for Sessions to recuse himself from the Russiagate investigation:

.@SenCoryGardner statement on Sessions — he should explain substance of conversations with Kislyak https://t.co/hSbuGIqeg4 #copolitics pic.twitter.com/OgY2GfYYN2

— Blair Miller (@blairmiller) March 2, 2017

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UPDATE #2: Sen. Michael Bennet, who led the call for Jeff Sessions to recuse himself from the Russiagate investigation, seems to be evolving toward a call to resign:

On calls for resignation, @SenBennetCO ofc says "gathering more information. At a minimum, AG Sessions should recuse himself…"#COpolitics

— Brandon Rittiman (@BrandonRittiman) March 2, 2017

Meanwhile, the Denver Post’s John Frank has a damning new lede:

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner remains unconvinced that Attorney General Jeff Sessions needs to recuse himself from the investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, despite new details and mounting pressure for Sessions to step aside.

Ouch.

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UPDATE: Rep. Mike Coffman calls Sessions’ omission “grave” as Cory Gardner’s silence begins to roar:

pic.twitter.com/ntkgN0YTO2

— Rep. Mike Coffman (@RepMikeCoffman) March 2, 2017

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Politico reporting, very bad news for the Trump administration on the Russian subversion front today:

The Trump administration’s Russia problem has flared up big-time amid revelations that Attorney General Jeff Sessions met twice with the Russian ambassador last year — and didn’t tell senators about it during his confirmation…

Calls for Sessions to recuse himself from the Justice Department’s investigation into ties between Trump and Russia have snowballed, following a Washington Post report Tuesday night exposing multiple meetings between Sessions and Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the U.S., during the campaign. Those meetings, one of which occurred during the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, came amid an alleged effort by Russia to aid Trump’s campaign, for which Sessions was a prominent surrogate.

Asked about connections between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign during his confirmation hearings, Sessions did not disclose his meetings with the ambassador and, in fact, told Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) that “I did not have communications with the Russians.” In a set of written answers for Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Sessions said he had not been in contact with Russian officials regarding the 2016 campaign.

In the wake of this revelation of what could be perjury committed by the nation’s Attorney General during his Senate confirmation hearings, Rep. Diana DeGette of Denver has issued a call for Jeff Sessions to resign immediately:

“Attorney General Sessions’ contact with the Russian ambassador while an advisor to the Trump campaign once again proves this administration’s causal relationship with transparency and the truth. If these revelations are true, he has perjured himself. In any case, given what we now know, the Attorney General should resign immediately or be removed.

“This continued stream of information regarding campaign, transition, and administration officials communicating with members of the Russian government and failing to disclose it creates an air of uncertainty about the information and guidance that the President is receiving from his closest advisors. Further, such disclosures point to the possibility that our democracy is being undermined by a foreign power with the consent of the White House. It is now more clear than ever that the United Sates Congress – and perhaps even a special prosecutor – should investigate and bring forth a transparent reporting of the facts since the administration evidently is unwilling to do so.”

The Hill reports that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is also calling for Sessions’ head:

“There cannot be even a scintilla of doubt about the impartiality and fairness of the attorney general, the top law enforcement official of the land,” Schumer told reporters at a news conference. “It’s clear Attorney General Sessions does not meet that test. Because the Department of Justice should be above reproach, for the good of the country, Attorney General Sessions should resign.”

Schumer, who for weeks has called for Sessions to recuse himself from the Justice Department’s investigation of contacts between Trump campaign officials and Russian intelligence agents, stepped up his demands after The Washington Post reported Wednesday night that Sessions misled Congress about meeting with the Russian ambassador.

So far, several Republicans including Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio have called for Sessions to recuse himself from investigations into Russian interference in last year’s election, but the facts of this are bad enough that that could change at any time. As of this morning, though, we’re obliged to note that Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado is refusing to even call for Sessions to recuse himself–having had the chance and failed today to do so in an NPR interview.

Because of the direct threat he poses to Colorado’s economy with regard to the state’s billion-dollar marijuana industry, Sessions has been one of the most controversial of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees in our state. Gardner is already in a difficult position defending Sessions, after Sessions apparently misled him before his confirmation claiming that marijuana wasn’t a high priority for the administration.

If Sessions’ attorney generalship unravels while Gardner plays defense, it’s not going to look good for our junior Senator.