President Donald Trump on Wednesday again publicly chastised his attorney general, Jeff Sessions, this time over an investigation into alleged surveillance abuses.
“Why is A.G. Jeff Sessions asking the Inspector General to investigate potentially massive FISA abuse. Will take forever, has no prosecutorial power and already late with reports on Comey etc. Isn’t the I.G. an Obama guy? Why not use Justice Department lawyers? DISGRACEFUL!” Trump tweeted.
Sessions said Tuesday that the Justice Department is looking at whether the FBI has properly handled applications for surveillance orders under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
Sessions, appearing at a news conference announcing a new opioid task force, was asked about House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes’ controversial memo outlining purported surveillance abuses and told reporters that “the inspector general will take that as one of the matters he’ll deal with.”
Trump has nursed a sour relationship with Sessions ever since the attorney general recused himself from all investigations into the 2016 campaign, including special counsel Robert Mueller’s expanding investigation into possible ties between Trump’s campaign and Russia.