Attorney General Jeff Sessions is still balking at the idea of appointing a second special counsel to investigate concerns with the Justice Department and FBI.
Despite mounting pressure from top Republicans to appoint another independent counsel — there is already one special counsel, Robert Mueller, who is currently looking into Russian interference in the 2016 election — Sessions again placed his faith in the DOJ inspector general to handle the matter when asked by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson in an interview that aired Friday evening.
“We’re going to get to the bottom of it. It could be one day that a special prosecutor would be required but we are going to look at this both with attorneys and within the inspector general’s office. And they will get to the bottom,” he told Tucker.
AG Jeff Sessions on FISA abuse: “It is our responsibility and I think my responsibility to ensure that the FISA process is carried out professionally, properly, lawfully and with integrity.” #Tucker pic.twitter.com/6zRzVqQXfL— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 10, 2018
Last week Sessions announced that DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz would lead the probe into alleged Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act abuses. However, that didn’t impress a large block of Republicans who are concerned about political bias in the DOJ and FBI.
In response to a question about restoring public trust, Sessions told Tucker, “It is our responsibility and I think my responsibility to ensure that the FISA process is carried out professionally, properly, lawfully, and with integrity.”
“I intend to do that,” he added. “We are working on that now. Our office of inspector general has almost 500 employees, investigators, and prosecutors. And they are going to work on this and get to the bottom of it.”
One day after Sessions made the announcement, a group of 13 House Republicans signed on to a letter sent to him that pushed for a special counsel that would look into agency leadership decisions to end the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s unauthorized private email server, the circumstances surrounding the genesis of the Trump-Russia investigation, and allegations in a recently released House Intelligence Committee memo regarding government surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
This week, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., and House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., asked Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to appoint a special counsel to investigate how the FBI handled applications to wiretap Trump associates in 2016 and 2017.
Sessions’ boss, President Trump, also appeared to be incensed with Sessions.
“Why is A.G. Jeff Sessions asking the Inspector General to investigate potentially massive FISA abuse,” Trump tweeted after Sessions announced Horowitz would take charge of the investigation. “Will take forever, has no prosecutorial power and already late with reports on [former FBI Director James] Comey etc. Isn’t the I.G. an Obama guy? Why not use Justice Department lawyers? DISGRACEFUL!”
Afterwards, Sessions put out a statement defending what he deemed was the “appropriate process” and said he will continue to do his job with “integrity and honor.”
