Trump’s acting AG Matt Whitaker has been cleared to oversee the Mueller investigation by DOJ ethics officials.
According to Fox News:
Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker will not recuse himself from overseeing the Russia probe, despite mounting pressure from Democrats who cite his “hostility” toward Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his investigation.
A source familiar with the matter told Fox News on Thursday that Whitaker met with Justice Department ethics officials this week, who told him he was not precluded from overseeing Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling and potential collusion with Trump campaign associates during the 2016 presidential election.
Whitaker, who served as chief of staff to former Attorney General Jeff Sessions until Sessions was fired, has faced extreme pressure from Democrats to recuse himself to ensure that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein continues in that role.
Sessions recused himself from overseeing the probe due to his work on the Trump campaign in 2016, turning control to Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller on May 17, 2017. Sessions, whose resignation was requested in early November, had been criticized by Trump throughout his tenure at the Justice Department due to the decision to recuse himself from the investigation.
Whitaker will now be able to oversee the Mueller investigation into Russian interference as well as the investigation by New York prosecutors into Trump’s finances.
