Dem leaders request formal update from DOJ on whether Whitaker should recuse himself
By Emily Birnbaum - 11/11/18 05:55 PM EST
Democratic leaders on Sunday sent a letter requesting a formal update from the Department of Justice's (DOJ) ethics office on whether President Trump's new acting attorney general, Matt Whitaker, should recuse himself from overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation.
The leaders, including prospective House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), in the letter asked the DOJ ethics office to review Whitaker's past statements on Mueller and issue a recommendation about his potential recusal.
Democrats since Whitaker's appointment on Wednesday have accused Trump of attempting to undermine Mueller's investigation by installing a Trump loyalist and Mueller critic to oversee the probe.
"There are serious ethical considerations that require Mr. Whitaker's immediate recusal from any involvement with the Special Counsel investigation of the Russian government's efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election," the Democratic leaders wrote in the letter.
Whitaker has publicly said the attorney general could curtail Mueller's efforts by limiting his funding and criticized the concept of a special counsel in the first place. He has stated definitively that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, the subject of Mueller's investigation.
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https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/416161-dem-leaders-request-formal-update-from-doj-watchdog-on-whether-whitaker
