Durbin Statement On Sessions False Testimony On Russian Connection
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement regarding Attorney General Jeff Sessions:
At Senator Sessions’ confirmation hearing before the Judiciary Committee, I called on him to commit to recuse himself from Justice Department investigations into the Trump campaign’s illegal dealings with the Russian government. During that hearing, Sessions said, “I have not had any communications with the Russians.” That is false, and he said it under oath. The President’s National Security Advisor resigned after making misleading statements about his contact with Russian officials—the Attorney General will be held to the same standard.
For months, I have been calling for an independent investigation of these Russian connections. Revelations of Senate and House Intelligence Committee Chairmen Richard Burr and Devin Nunes secretly colluding with the White House to discredit news stories about Russia make them unfit to conduct investigations. This is a national security crisis and we cannot afford to allow this process to be compromised further—we need an independent commission to investigate now.