New acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker now overseeing Mueller investigation: 5 things to know
by Kelly Cohen
| November 07, 2018 06:03 PM
Matthew Whitaker is now at the helm of the Justice Department, moving from chief of staff to the attorney general to acting attorney general.
The 49-year-old Republican lawyer has assumed all attorney general responsibilities after Jeff Sessions offered his resignation to the White House on Wednesday.
Sessions' resignation was requested via John Kelly, who is the chief of staff to President Trump.
Who is Matthew Whitaker?
Whitaker, an Iowa native, served as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Iowa from 2004 to 2009. He was appointed by former President George W. Bush.
He then was a candidate for the Republican nomination in the Iowa Senate in 2014. Whitaker did not win in the primary, and Joni Ernst went on to win the general election.
Whitaker then became a managing partner of a law firm before joining the Justice Department in September 2017 as then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ chief of staff.
In September, it was reported that Whitaker was on the shortlist to replace then-White House counsel Don McGahn.
In an interview with Fox News in October, Trump was asked about a Washington Post story that alleged he had asked Whitaker if he wanted to replace Sessions.
"Well, I never talk about that, but I can tell you Matt Whitaker's a great guy. I mean, I know Matt Whitaker. But I never talk about conversations that I had,†Trump said in the interview.
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