Sessions Discusses Comey, Russia, Trump in Senate Hearing

Attorney General Jeff Sessions testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday afternoon on Russia's potential interference in the 2016 election. Sessions also faced questions on President Trump's handling of the James Comey firing, the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller, and conversations with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Sessions was sometimes evasive, declining to answer questions on his conversations with President Trump on the premise that Trump might choose to invoke executive privilege.

THE WEEKLY STANDARD provided live updates, which are archived below. Newest posts are at the top, so scroll from the bottom.

7:10 p.m. Senators Weigh In

Alabama senator Luther Strange, who replaced Jeff Sessions in the Senate, told reporters Tuesday evening that he thought his predecessor pulled it off: "He did really well. Attorney General Sessions answered the questions that were asked very directly—when he couldn't, he explained why—so I hope this puts to rest a lot of the innuendo that's been flying around, and we can move on to issues that people really are asking us about."

Senator Marco Rubio, who serves on the committee conducting the investigation, answered questions about conflicts between Comey's testimony and Sessions'. Comey said he told the attorney general he was not comfortable alone with Trump and Sessions did not respond; Sessions testified that he did respond. "Two people who are under oath, two people who are found to be truthful and honorable under oath give a different testimony about what exactly's happened after the fact. I'm not sure we'll ever be able to determine [what happened], but in the end that doesn't go to the heart of the investigation," he said. "It's just a question of whether or not Comey took his complaints to the right person and whether or not Sessions responded in an appropriate way."

Asked about another apparent contradiction—when Sessions said he would "maybe" have left the campaign if they were colluding with Russians, then later answered affirmatively—Rubio said, "I don't have any doubt that he would have. I've never known Jeff Sessions to be a pro-Putin activist."