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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 2018)
NATION Thursday, November 8, 2018 East Oregonian Page 7A Sessions pushed out after a year of attacks from Trump By ERIC TUCKER AND MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON — Attor- ney General Jeff Sessions was pushed out Wednesday after enduring more than a year of blistering and per- sonal attacks from President Donald Trump, who inserted in his place a Republican Party loyalist with authority to oversee the remainder of the special counsel’s Russia investigation. The move has poten- tially ominous implications for special counsel Rob- ert Mueller’s probe given that the new acting attorney general, Matthew Whitaker, until now Sessions’ chief of staff, has questioned the inquiry’s scope and spoke publicly before joining the Justice Department about ways an attorney general could theoretically stymie the investigation. Congressional Demo- crats, concerned about pro- tecting Mueller, called on Whitaker to recuse himself from overseeing the investi- gation in its final but poten- tially explosive stages. That duty has belonged to Deputy Attorney Gen- eral Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller and closely monitors his work. The resignation, in a one- page letter to Trump, came one day after Republicans lost control of the House of Representatives and was the first of several expected post-midterms Cabinet and White House departures. Though Sessions was an early and prominent cam- paign backer of Trump, his departure letter lacked effu- sive praise for the president and made clear the resigna- tion came “at your request.” “Since the day I was hon- ored to be sworn in as attor- ney general of the United States, I came to work at the Department of Justice every day determined to do my duty and serve my country,” Sessions wrote. The departure was the culmination of a toxic rela- tionship that frayed just weeks into Sessions’ ten- ure, when he stepped aside from the Russia investiga- tion because of his campaign advocacy and following the revelation that he had met twice in 2016 with the Rus- sian ambassador to the U.S. Trump blamed the recusal for the appointment of Muel- ler, who took over the Rus- sia investigation two months later and began examining whether Trump’s hector- ing of Sessions was part of a broader effort to obstruct the probe. The investigation has so far produced 32 criminal charges and guilty pleas from AP Photo/Andrew Harnik In this July 20, 2017 file photo, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, right, accompanied by Deputy Attorney Gen- eral Rod Rosenstein, speaks at a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington. Sessions re- signed Wednesday. four former Trump aides. But the work is not done and critical decisions await that could shape the remainder of Trump’s presidency. Mueller’s grand jury, for instance, has heard testimony for months about Trump confidant Roger Stone and what advance knowledge he may have had about Rus- sian hacking of Democratic emails. Mueller’s team has also been pressing for an interview with Trump. And the department is expected at some point to receive a con- fidential report of Mueller’s findings, though it’s unclear how much will be public. Separately, Justice Department prosecutors in New York secured a guilty plea from Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who said the presi- dent directed him to arrange hush-money payments before the 2016 election to two women who said they had sex with Trump. Trump had repeatedly been talked out of firing Ses- sions until after the mid- terms, but he told confi- dants in recent weeks that he wanted Sessions out as soon as possible after the elec- tions, according to a Repub- lican close to the White House who was not autho- rized to publicly discuss pri- vate conversations. The president deflected questions about Sessions’ expected departure at a White House news confer- ence Wednesday. He did not mention that White House chief of staff John Kelly had called Sessions beforehand to ask for his resignation. The undated letter was then sent to the White House. The Justice Department did not directly answer whether Whitaker would assume control of Mueller’s investigation, with spokes- woman Sarah Isgur Flores saying he would be “in charge of all matters under the purview of the Depart- ment of Justice.” Rosenstein remains at the department and could still be involved in oversight. He has previously said that he saw no basis for firing Muel- ler. Trump said Wednesday that he did not plan to stop the investigation. Without Sessions’ cam- paign or Russia entangle- ments, there’s no legal rea- son Whitaker couldn’t immediately oversee the probe. And since Sessions tech- nically resigned instead of forcing the White House to fire him, he opened the door under federal law to allow the president to choose his successor instead of simply elevating Rosenstein, said University of Texas law pro- fessor Stephen Vladeck. “Sessions did not do the thing he could have done to better protect Rosenstein, and through Rosenstein, the Mueller investigation,” Vla- deck said. That left Whitaker in charge, at least for now, though Democrats, includ- ing Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Chuck Schumer, said he should recuse himself because of his comments on the probe. Rep. Jerry Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Commit- tee, said he wants “answers immediately” and “we will hold people accountable.” Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney from Iowa who twice ran unsuccessfully for statewide office and founded a law firm with other Repub- lican Party activists, once opined about a scenario in which Trump could fire Ses- sions, and then appoint an acting attorney general who could stifle the funding of Mueller’s probe. In that scenario, Mueller’s budget could be reduced “so low that his investigation grinds to almost a halt,” Whitaker said during an interview with CNN in July 2017 before he joined the Justice Department. In a CNN op-ed last year, Whitaker wrote, “Mueller has come up to a red line in the Russia 2016 elec- tion-meddling investigation that he is dangerously close to crossing.” Dead brothel owner wins election for Nevada legislative seat By MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press LAS VEGAS — A Nevada brothel owner and reality TV star who died last month after fashioning him- self as a Donald Trump-style Republican candidate has won a heavily GOP state leg- islative district. Dennis Hof defeated Dem- ocratic educator Lesia Roma- nov on Tuesday in the race for Nevada’s 36th Assem- bly District, which includes rural communities and large stretches of desert in the southern part of the state. County offi- cials will appoint a Republican to take his place in the seat. Hof was found dead on Oct. 16 after a weekend of parties celebrat- ing his 72nd birth- Hof day. Officials are still determining his cause of death, but they don’t suspect foul play. Hof owned a handful of brothels in Nevada, the only state that allows them to legally operate. He also starred in the HBO adult reality series “Cat- house” and wrote a book titled “The Art of the Pimp,” akin to Trump’s book “The Art of the Deal.” Hof was found dead at his Love Ranch brothel about an hour outside Las Vegas. His body was discovered by porn actor Ron Jeremy and a prostitute at the brothel. Hof had spent the four previous days partying with notables from the sex indus- try and political world cele- brating his 72nd birthday. The brothel where his body was found is where NBA player Lamar Odom was found unconscious in 2015. About 20 brothels operate in Nevada, mostly in rural areas. They’re banned in the counties that contain Las Vegas and Reno. The state doesn’t publicize how many are open, and most owners keep a much lower profile than Hof did. Hof ran for office in 2016 as a Libertarian, but lost the race. This year, he ran as a Republican and earned back- ing from Trump associ- ate Roger Stone and tax-cut activist Grover Norquist. He upended Nevada pol- itics this summer when he ousted an incumbent Repub- lican lawmaker in a primary, celebrating at an election night party with “Hollywood Madam” Heidi Fleiss. He said an anti-brothel push and regulatory prob- lems he faced this year were political retribution. Nevada’s 36th Assem- bly District has long been a Republican-held seat. The sprawling assem- bly district that touches both California and Utah, and includes the Nevada National Security Site where nuclear weapons were once tested. Guardian Care Center’s Fall Fundraiser L ive I have the power to explore Auction & Dinner A L L YO U C A N E AT PIZZA BUFFET 6:00 - 8:00 PM S U P E R NOV. 9 F U N LIVE AUCTION INCLUDES ONE T I C K E T S FREE DRINK TICKET & RAFFLE TICKET $ 25 G R E AT I T E M S F O R CHRISTMAS GIFTS 00 EA. 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