This is a break the glass moment. Replacing the Attorney General with a non-Senate-confirmed political staffer is highly irregular & unacceptable. Protecting the Special Counsel investigation is more urgent than ever.
President Trump just removed Jeff Sessions. He wants an Attorney General to serve his interest, not the public.
Mueller's investigation and the independence of the DOJ must be protected. Whitaker and any nominee must commit to doing both.
We will protect the rule of law.
.@realDonaldTrump’s firing of Jeff Sessions brings us one step closer to a constitutional crisis. Congress must act to ensure that Special Counsel Mueller can do his job without interference.
I think with a lot of high hopes crashing for Democratic voters in places like Florida and with Beto, there is maybe a drastic underappreciation of how Democratic control of the House will change the course of this country. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a very big deal.
The president has made abundantly clear that he’ll take any action he can to undermine the Mueller investigation. No one who lacks Senate confirmation should be placed in charge of this investigation, especially Matthew Whitaker who publicly criticized Mueller’s work last year.
Imagine what it would feel like to see @realDonaldTrump fire #Sessions and be powerless to save our democracy. Fortunately, no one has to feel that way any longer. Democrats will be in the majority very soon. And abuses of power will finally meet a check on power.
Earlier this year, we passed S.2644, the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act, out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The bill would safeguard Robert Mueller’s investigation. Leader McConnell should bring the bill to the Senate floor as soon as possible
In a direct move to undermine the Mueller investigation, @realDonaldTrump forced Jeff Sessions to resign. I am concerned that the Mueller investigation will now be overseen by Acting AG Matthew Whitaker – someone who has raised some troubling views about the investigation.
I don't think a White House Press Pool boycott is a good idea in response to Jim Acosta.
That's what Trump wants.
We need the press back there and asking the questions they don't want to answer.
This is important more now than ever.
no one could have predicted that the party of Nazis, child molesters, wife beaters, income tax cheaters, pedophile wrestling coaches, compromised Russian assets, blackout-drunk rapist judges and bonesaw murder apologists would also be the party of deranged bomb-sending terrorists
He isn't going to allow this to stop.
Reporting on unpopular policies and the corruption within his administration isn't attacking him.
It's reporting.
The anger and hatred within this country is being grown from that very podium he stands behind.
He's tearing Amercia apart.
Leaders have a responsibility to calm tensions, not inflame them. I urge everyone to be vigilant in the face of threats and thank all the law enforcement personnel who are protecting government and private sites from attack.