More than 100 conservatives signed a letter of support for Attorney General Jeff Sessions amid a tough two weeks of tension with President Trump.
In the letter dated Friday, the group called Sessions “the right man, and the best man” to lead the Department of Justice.
“He is a principled conservative leader who has demonstrated integrity and excellence throughout his public career. While all conservatives are not in agreement with all his decisions, we respect that he has undertaken many reforms with very few colleagues in the department who were similarly supportive of President Trump from the very early days. To lose his leadership would be disastrous for the president’s policy agenda,” the letter reads.
Tensions between Sessions and Trump flared up last week, when the president told the New York Times how disappointed he was in Sessions’ decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation.
Had he known Sessions was to recuse himself, paving the way for a special counsel, Trump said he would have not appointed him to be attorney general.
“Though the president’s displeasure with the investigation may be understandable, a move to replace Jeff Sessions as attorney general would not be,” the letter reads.
Following the interview, Trump called Sessions both “beleaguered” and “weak” on Twitter, as well as voiced his disappointment in various press conferences and interviews.
Sessions has responded to Trump, calling the criticisms “hurtful” but saying he will remain as attorney general — and that he serves at the pleasure of Trump and understands he can be fired at any time.
“No one in the Trump administration has shown more commitment to president’s principles than Sessions – he continues to be a loyal ally of the president, and of the people who elected him,” the letter concludes.
Conservative leaders who signed the letter include President Ronald Reagan’s attorney general, Edwin Meese, Senate Conservatives Fund President Ken Cuccinelli, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, former Sen. Jim DeMint, Media Research Center President Brent Bozell, and Michael Farris, president and CEO of Alliance Defending Freedom.
Read the full letter here.
