Washington, Aug 24 (EFE).- US President Donald Trump, some of whose former associates are accused of corrupt activities, has upped the pressure on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to look into all the corruption perpetrated by his political adversaries.
“Come on Jeff, you can do it, the country is waiting!” Trump said in a tweet slamming his attorney general.
Sessions, who up to now had not responded in kind to the president’s criticisms, lashed back this Thursday with an unusual statement saying that “while I am Attorney General, the actions of the Department of Justice will not be improperly influenced by political considerations,” and stood up for the independence of his “dedicated group of law enforcement investigators and prosecutors.”
“Jeff, this is GREAT, what everyone wants, so look into all of the corruption on the ‘other side,'” Trump answered in a tweet to Sessions.
Trump’s attacks on the attorney general, head of the US Justice Department, with whom he has had tense relations for more than a year, got stronger this week following the progress of the Russia investigation, the conviction of his former campaign manager Paul Manafort for tax evasion and financial fraud, and the accusations of his former fixer and attorney Michael Cohen, who has implicated the president in a crime.
Trump has expressed his frustration on numerous occasions for Sessions’ decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation due to his own contacts with Moscow, a measure that has reduced the influence of the Justice Department on the investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
The tension between the two has become “unsustainable,” said Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham on Thursday, for which he speculated that the current head of the Justice Department would not last much longer in his position.
Sessions, a former Republican senator, was one of the first to champion Trump’s candidacy for the White House.