Jeff Sessions Calls Russian Collusion Allegation an ‘Appalling and Detestable Lie’ Attorney general says he never talked to Russian officials about election interference, defends role in Comey firing By Aruna Viswanatha, Paul Sonne and Del Quentin Wilber
https://www.wsj.com/articles/sessions-denies-meeting-russian-officials-at-mayflower-hotel-1497380680
Attorney General Jeff Sessions told a Senate panel on Tuesday that he never met with any Russian officials last year to discuss the presidential campaign and any suggestion that he colluded with them to help Donald Trump was “an appalling and detestable lie.”
Mr. Sessions defended his role in firing former FBI Director James Comey, saying his decision to step aside from campaign-related investigations didn’t apply to broad oversight of the Justice Department. He also refused to discuss the content of any conversations he had with President Trump on the subject.
Mr. Sessions, a former Republican senator from Alabama and a top adviser to Mr. Trump during the campaign, spoke forcefully before the Senate Intelligence Committee, saying he needed to defend himself from “scurrilous” accusations.
Mr. Sessions was at times combative and folksy in answering and parrying questions as he sought to dispel some of the shadows cast in part by Mr. Comey’s testimony last week about the attorney general’s behavior.
Mr. Sessions alternated between strong denials and hazy recollections, saying he couldn’t recall whether he had a passing encounter with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington or any other undisclosed interactions with Russian officials.
Tuesday’s hearing became heated at times, as Mr. Sessions said he didn’t appreciate the “innuendo being leaked out there about me” while Sen. Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) suggested Mr. Sessions was “stonewalling” by declining to answer questions about his conversations with the president.
Mr. Sessions said he was protecting the president’s “constitutional right” to keep such conversations confidential and citing a Justice Department policy on not commenting on conversations between the attorney general and the president.
Such answers didn’t satisfy the Democratic senators on the committee.
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D., N.M.) accused Mr. Sessions of blocking the Senate inquiry. “You took an oath,” the senator said. “You raised your right hand here today and said that you would solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. And now you’re not answering questions. You’re impeding the investigation.”
Testimony last week from Mr. Comey before the same panel intensified attention on Mr. Sessions’ interactions with the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak. But he said his two meetings with Mr. Kislyak had nothing to do with the campaign. “I have never met with or had any conversations with any Russians or any foreign officials concerning any type of interference with any campaign or election,” Mr. Sessions said. He also said he had “racked my brain” to see if he could recall a third meeting but couldn’t.
The Senate Intelligence Committee and several other congressional panels are investigating Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 election. The Russian government denies that, and Mr. Trump has called the probes a “witch hunt.” He has said no one on his campaign coordinated with the Kremlin.
The attorney general’s highly anticipated testimony came after Mr. Comey portrayed Mr. Sessions as an attorney general who did little to manage a relationship between Mr. Trump and Mr. Comey that was becoming increasingly problematic. The former FBI director also hinted that there were reasons Mr. Sessions had to step away from the investigation into Russian interference in the election beyond what was publicly known. CONTINUE AT SITE
Comments are closed.
