*By Kristen Lee* Attorney General Jeff Sessions abruptly resigned at President Trump's request on Wednesday, ending a tenure marked by a series of public humiliations inflicted by the man who elevated him into the nation's highest law-enforcement position. After enjoying Sessions' early support on the campaign trail, Trump turned against his AG in March 2017 after he recused himself from a probe into Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Since Sessions stepped aside, Trump has frequently railed against his attorney general in public. "I don't have an attorney general. It's very sad," Trump said during a scathing interview with Hill.TV in September. The president previously said he would not have named Sessions to head the Justice Department had he known the AG would recuse himself from the Russia probe. Sessions' job security has long been in question. At a post-election press conference earlier on Wednesday, Trump had declined to answer a question about Sessions' future in his administration. “I’d rather answer that at a little bit different time," Trump had said. In a tweet on Wednesday afternoon, Trump said Sessions' chief of staff Matthew Whitaker will step in as acting attorney general. "We thank Attorney General Jeff Sessions for his service, and wish him well! A permanent replacement will be named at a later date," Trump said. In a formal letter to Trump, Sessions noted that he was submitting his resignation at the president's request. He said he was proud that he and Trump "restored and upheld the rule of law" during his time in office.

Share:
More In Politics
U.S. Death Toll in Israel-Hamas War Rises to 22 as Blinken Heads to Israel
The number of U.S. citizens confirmed to have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war has risen to at least 22 with at least 17 more Americans unaccounted for, the State Department said Wednesday. That's an increase in the death toll from 14 the day before, in a war that has already claimed more than 2,200 lives on both sides.
Load More