Jeff Sessions vows to stay at Justice Department after Trump complaints

We “continue every single day to work hard to serve the national interests, and we wholeheartedly join in the priorities of President Trump,” Sessions told reporters in Washington, D.C.

“I have the honor as serving as attorney general, it’s something that goes beyond any thought I would have ever had for myself,” he added. “We love this job, we love this department, and I plan to continue to do so as long as that is appropriate.”

When asked if he can continue to “effectively serve” if he doesn’t have the confidence of the president, Sessions said the press conference is an example of his willingness to keep working.

“We’re serving right now. I’m totally confident that we can continue to run this office in an effective way,” he said.

Sessions used last week’s announcement of the “largest healthcare fraud takedown in American history” as an example of the Justice Department’s continued work. He also cited the department’s takedown of the dark web market Alphabay.

“This is the largest dark net marketplace takedown in history,” Sessions said earlier, noting that at the time of the takedown, there were more than 250,000 listings for illegal drugs on Alphabay.

Trump also blasted Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, both of whom flanked Sessions during the Thursday press conference.

When asked if he plans to stay in his role, Rostenstein said: “I’m proud to work here today and proud to work here tomorrow.”

At a briefing with reporters on Wednesday, just hours before the Trump interview, Rosenstein said it is “a great honor and privilege” to work at the Justice Department. “I like my job. I’m very happy to have this job.”