Sen. Lindsey Graham suggests AG Jeff Sessions could be replaced ‘sooner rather than later’

Sen. Lindsey Graham suggests AG Jeff Sessions could be replaced ‘sooner rather than later’

August 24, 2018 by Ben Marquis

Image via mark reinstein / Shutterstock.com
The public feud between Attorney General Jeff Sessions and President Donald Trump was reignited on Thursday when Trump aimed some sharp criticism at Sessions (and his choice to recuse himself from all matters related to the 2016 election) in an interview with Fox & Friends co-host Ainsley Earhardt.

The interview left pundits wondering if Sessions’ days as head of the Justice Department are numbered — and according to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), that may be the case.
“Sooner rather than later”
Reporters caught up with Graham in the corridors of the Senate on Thursday to ask for his take on the back-and-forth between Trump and Sessions.
Graham’s his assessment of their current relationship wasn’t particularly good.

“The president is entitled to an attorney general he has faith in, somebody that is qualified for the job, and I think there will come a time — sooner rather than later — where it will be time to have a new face and fresh voice at the Department of Justice,” Graham said.
He added: “Replacing him before the election, to me, would be a non-starter, but the idea of having a new attorney general in the first term of President Trump’s administration, I think is very likely.”
All about timing
Firing or demanding a resignation from Sessions right now, just months prior to the midterm elections, would indeed be a “non-starter,” as the Senate would be unlikely to consider and confirm a replacement nominee in a timely fashion — and there is no doubt that Democrats would seize the opportunity to further obstruct Trump and rally their base to get out and vote.

If there is going to be a change in the attorney general position, it would likely occur not long after November’s elections — so long as Republicans maintain control of the Senate.
That said, and despite the comments from Graham and other politicians, there is also the chance that Sessions isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and this whole “feud” between Sessions and the president is little more than an elaborate kabuki theater designed to distract the media and Trump’s opponents.
While everyone focuses on the public spat between Sessions and Trump — and it looks as though there is a wide gulf separating the two — the two are actually quietly at work together behind the scenes, getting things done without the constant harping from a liberal media and Democrats peering over their shoulders and obstructing their every single move…or so the theory goes.

To be sure, there are many people who’ve grown frustrated with what appears to be a lack of progress in draining the swamp and holding wrongdoers accountable at the Justice Department.
Sessions could very well be the wrong man for the job, and his days in his current role could indeed be numbered. But on the other hand, this whole thing could just be a bit of deception and misdirection on the part of Sessions and Trump to clear some space and provide cover while Sessions gets all of his ducks in row prior to unleashing actual “justice” on the people who have done this nation wrong.