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Sessions decries caricature of him at AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton matters | Fox News 11/01/2017, 04)15

Sessions decries caricature of him at


AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton
matters
Published January 10, 2017

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Sessions: I will recuse myself from Clinton investigations

Attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions and his allies, at the first
confirmation hearing for President-elect Donald Trumps Cabinet picks,
mounted a full-scale response Tuesday to what they described as
character attacks against him decrying false charges about his past
while offering assurances that if confirmed he would uphold and enforce
the law.

On one of the most sensitive topics he could face if confirmed as attorney


general, Sessions also publicly committed to recuse himself from any
issues involving Hillary Clinton that were raised during the 2016
campaign.

We can never have a political dispute turn into a criminal dispute, the
Alabama Republican senator said.

Sessions, under questioning from Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman


Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, was trying to ease concerns about Trumps
suggestion during the campaign he might continue investigating his then-
Democratic opponent, amid lingering questions over her email use and
family foundation. Sessions, who campaigned for Trump, said the issue
could place his objectivity in question as he vowed to recuse himself from
any matters involving those controversies.

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Sessions decries caricature of him at AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton matters | Fox News 11/01/2017, 04)15

The hearing itself lasted all day and was interrupted repeatedly by
protesters shouting epithets at the nominee, whom opponents have tried to
paint as anti-immigrant.

Democrats also used the session to probe the nominee on his views on
everything from abortion to marijuana policy - and challenge him on the
president-elects controversial comments and views. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-
Vt., at one point asked Sessions about leaked 2005 footage in which Trump
was heard making lewd comments about grabbing women.

"Is grabbing a woman by her genitals without her consent sexual assault?"
Leahy asked.

Clearly it is, Sessions answered.

Known for his staunch conservative stances on immigration and other


issues, Sessions at times took a conciliatory tone. He pledged that even on
laws he opposed, he would do his dead-level best to fairly enforce them.
He indicated he accepts the legality of same-sex marriage, and also
distanced himself from Trumps campaign call to temporarily suspend
Muslim immigration, saying he does not think Muslims as a religious
group should be denied entry to the U.S.

But Sessions also fought back hard against what he described as a


caricature of him -- first painted during his 1986 nomination for a federal
judgeship that was derailed by accusations he had made racially insensitive
comments as a prosecutor.

Sessions decried the false charges including suggestions he once


sympathized with the KKK. He and his allies cited his past prosecution of
Klansmen in countering the narrative, while Sessions denied another
charge that he once called the NAACP un-American.

I deeply understand the history of civil rights and the horrendous

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Sessions decries caricature of him at AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton matters | Fox News 11/01/2017, 04)15

impact that relentless and systemic discrimination and the denial of voting
rights has had on our African-American brothers and sisters, Sessions
said, insisting he did not harbor racial animosities.

Sessions delivered testimony otherwise heavy on law-and-order themes,


vowing to boost prosecutions and confront the crime epidemic.

Citing crime spikes in major cities like Chicago as well as the growing
heroin epidemic, he said: These trends cannot continue. It is a
fundamental civil right to be safe in your home and your community.

He vowed if confirmed to systematically prosecute criminals who use guns


in committing crimes and go after cartels.

It will be my priority to confront these crises vigorously, effectively, and


immediately, he said.

One of the two senators introducing him at Tuesday's hearing was


moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who vouched for her
colleagues character and swatted back the character attacks against him.
Citing his prosecution of Klansmen and other incidents, she said, These
are not the actions of an individual who is motivated by racial animus.

Grassley also praised Sessions record. We know him well, said Grassley,
R-Iowa. The members of this committee know him to be a leader who
has served the people of Alabama and all Americans with integrity, with
dedication and with courage.

Protesters repeatedly tried to disrupt Tuesday's proceedings. As Sessions


entered the hearing room, demonstrators in KKK costumes started
shouting, and others held up signs that read, Stand Against Xenophobia.
Others staged a prolonged disruption after Sessions voiced support for
keeping the Guantanamo Bay detention camp open.

The hearing kicks off what is likely to be a contentious confirmation

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Sessions decries caricature of him at AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton matters | Fox News 11/01/2017, 04)15

process for Trumps Cabinet nominees.

John Kelly, a retired Marine general, had his hearing Tuesday afternoon
before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Committee, while secretary of state pick Rex Tillerson heads to the Hill on
Wednesday. Other key hearings have been delayed amid concerns from
Democrats.

Democrats are expected to use the two days of hearings to challenge


Sessions' commitment to civil rights, a chief priority of the Justice
Department during the Obama administration, and other issues.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the committees top Democrat, offered


words of caution in her opening remarks. She critiqued what she called
Sessions extremely conservative agenda, citing his votes against the so-
called DREAM Act and other policies Democrats backed.

But Republicans have expressed strong support and are expected to secure
more than enough votes needed to confirm him, including from some
Democrats in conservative-leaning states.

The Alabama lawmaker is known as one of the most staunchly conservative


members of the Senate, and has already drawn opposition from at least
two Democrats, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Ohio Sen. Sherrod
Brown.

In a dramatic turn, Booker -- one of three black senators -- said he will


testify against Sessions on Wednesday, marking an apparently
unprecedented move by a senator to testify against a colleague seeking a
Cabinet post. In a statement, Booker accused Sessions of having a
"concerning" record on civil rights and criminal justice reform and called
his decision "a call to conscience." Booker has only been in the U.S. Senate
since 2013, having previously served as Newark mayor.

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Sessions decries caricature of him at AG hearing, vows recusal on Clinton matters | Fox News 11/01/2017, 04)15

If confirmed, Sessions, a four-term senator, would succeed outgoing


Attorney General Loretta Lynch and would be in a position to dramatically
reshape Justice Department priorities in the areas of civil rights,
environmental enforcement and criminal justice.

Sessions was first elected to the Senate in 1996 and before that served as
state attorney general and a United States attorney. He's been a reliably
conservative voice in Congress, supporting government surveillance
programs, objecting to the proposed closure of the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,
detention facility and opposing as too lenient a 2013 bipartisan
immigration bill that included a pathway to citizenship for the estimated 11
million immigrants living in the U.S. illegally.

Civil rights advocates have rallied against his nomination, with protesters
staging a sit-in last week at a Sessions office in Alabama and circulating
letters opposed to his nomination. Advocacy groups have drawn attention
to positions from Sessions they fear could weaken legal protections for
immigrants, minority voters and gays, lesbians and transgender people.

Sessions' supporters have pointed to bipartisan work in the Senate and to


supportive statements from some Democrats and even the son of a civil
rights activist whom Sessions unsuccessfully prosecuted for voter fraud in
Alabama.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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