U.S. Attorney General Calls Russia Collusion Allegations a 'Despicable Lie'

Jeff Sessions, the U.S. Attorney General, on Tuesday, June 13, described any allegations of 'collusion with Russia' as a 'despicable lie' during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing. Sessions' appearance before the Senate Intelligence Committee is part of several separate investigations into the potential Russian interference in the U.S. presidential elections and possible contacts between Donald Trump's associates and Russian parties. Since Sessions participated in the investigations related to the 'Russian interference in the U.S. elections' case, several U.S. lawmakers had called for Sessions to step back from the case due to 'conflict of interest,' which he ultimately did. On Tuesday, Sessions stated that his withdrawal from the Russia case was due to the law and nothing else. However, former FBI Director James Comey testified last week in the Senate that the FBI had information that made Sessions' involvement in the Russia case 'problematic.' On the other hand, Donald Trump stated in a release regarding Comey's dismissal that he had fired James Comey based on the recommendation of Jeff Sessions, the U.S. Attorney General. Comey testified last Thursday that he believes the U.S. President dismissed him because of the Russia case. The former FBI Director stated that Donald Trump had asked him for 'loyalty.' On Tuesday, Jeff Sessions reiterated that the recommendation to dismiss the FBI Director had nothing to do with the Russia case and that he had no specific information regarding the investigation process in the Russia case as per his own request. Recently, American media have speculated about the potential dismissal of Robert Mueller, the new head of the Russia case. Mueller took over the Russia case after the dismissal of the FBI Director. During the Tuesday session, Jeff Sessions expressed complete trust in Robert Mueller. According to reports from AFP, some reports indicate that Donald Trump is displeased with Sessions' withdrawal from the Russia case. Jeff Sessions stated that he does not recall having any contact or conversation with Sergei Kislyak, the Russian ambassador, during a Donald Trump campaign rally at the 'Mayflower' hotel in Washington in April 2016. The U.S. Attorney General emphasized that any claim regarding 'his awareness of any collusion with the Russian government to undermine this country, which I have served for 35 years, or to disrupt the integrity of our democratic process, is a vile and despicable lie.' Sessions had previously acknowledged that he met with the Russian ambassador twice in 2016 and subsequently withdrew from the Russia case. In response to senators, the U.S. Attorney General stated that as U.S. intelligence agencies suggest, 'it appears' that Russia interfered in the 2016 elections. However, he noted that he personally had not received any reports regarding Russian interference in the elections.