CONWAY — Congressman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions should resign, calling for a “full investigation” into ties between the Trump White House and Russia.
Speaking to reporters in the Town Hall Friday, before touring the aftermath of a recent tornado in Pumpkin Hollow, Neal said the attorney general “should resign … we need a full investigation into not only on what’s going on here, but also in Europe.”
The congressman’s comments were made in light of a report by The Washington Post that found Sessions met twice with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before his attorney general confirmation hearing. During that hearing, however, Sessions denied any such meetings, saying, “I did not have communications with the Russians, and I’m unable to comment on it.”
A day earlier, on Thursday, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern raised similar concerns, relating in a news statement, “it is clear that Attorney General Jeff Sessions is not fit to serve as the top law enforcement officer of our country and must resign.”
In response to the report, as reported by the Associated Press, Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said “there was absolutely nothing misleading about his answer,” noting that Sessions met with more than 25 foreign ambassadors in his then-role as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
In days following, Sessions recused himself from all Justice Department investigations into Russia’s involvement with the 2016 Presidential Election.
According to Neal, the meeting is especially significant because Kislyak “is a well known to American security as a spy recruiter.”
“Now, committees in Congress need to do their work,” Neal continued. “This is not about who won or lost, this is about, as Sen. John McCain said, ‘our number one foe, Russia.’”