So this was a straight up firing and not a resignation – not even a fake resignation. Doesn't that mean that Rod Rosenstein becomes acting AG and Trump doesn't get the privilege of appointing one? @kaitlancollins @YesMomsCan @Delavegalaw
1998 Federal Vacancies Reform Act gives the president the authority to temporarily move a Senate-confirmed political appointees into a vacant position when the predecessor dies or resigns...In the case of firings, the federal govt has a succession plan.
cnb.cx/2QUW9Ea
cnb.cx/2QUW9Ea
Per @NormEisen: "Under 5 USC 3344, the president cannot fire a Senate confirmed official and replace him with a person of his choosing. Sessions was constructively fired."
"Principal officers of the US must be confirmed by the Senate under its 'Advice & Consent' powers." Trump’s installation of Matt Whitaker as acting AG after forcing Sessions' resignation is unconstitutional AND illegal.
by @neal_katyal @gtconway3d #Maddow nyti.ms/2yZ1tyP
by @neal_katyal @gtconway3d #Maddow nyti.ms/2yZ1tyP
If ethics officials recommended 'forcefully' that Trump's new acting AG Matt Whitaker recuse and he declines, he could then be referred to the DOJ's Office of Professional Responsibility, and his license to practice law could be put at issue.
#Maddow
#Maddow
"Trump’s installation of Matthew Whitaker as acting attorney general after forcing the resignation of Jeff Sessions is unconstitutional. It's ILLEGAL. And it means anything Whitaker does, or tries to do, in that position is invalid."
#Maddow @DeadlineWH
#Maddow @DeadlineWH
NEW: A year before taking over Mueller's probe, Trump's new acting AG Matt Whitaker declared definitively that there was "no collusion" between Trump & Russia and “the real Russian ties were with Hillary Clinton.”
by @willsommer @maxwelltani @woodruffbets thebea.st/2QzJvtO?source…
by @willsommer @maxwelltani @woodruffbets thebea.st/2QzJvtO?source…
Trump's new acting AG Matt Whitaker in Jun 2017: "This is power that is completely vested in the president…If he wanted to, [Trump] could have told Jim [Comey] to stop investigating Mike Flynn."
#Maddow
#Maddow
There is an active FBI criminal investigation of a Florida company accused of scamming millions from customers during the period that acting US attorney general Matthew Whitaker served as a paid advisory-board member. Whitaker now oversees the FBI.
#Maddow on.wsj.com/2qDhRQY
#Maddow on.wsj.com/2qDhRQY
A court-appointed receiver for World Patent Marketing [under FBI criminal investigation] said other advisory-board members returned fees they received from the company, but that Matt Whitaker didn’t respond to a demand notice sent by the receiver.
#Maddow
#Maddow
From 2005-2007, then Iowa US Atty Matt Whitaker was responsible for the unsuccessful investigation & prosecution of openly gay Dem State Sen Matt McCoy on charges of attempting to extort $2K. The jury returned a not guilty verdict in under 2 hours.
#Maddow wapo.st/2FeMbvD?tid=ss…
#Maddow wapo.st/2FeMbvD?tid=ss…
EXCLUSIVE: Trump's acting US Attorney General Matt Whitaker, who Trump claims not to know, privately counseled Trump this past year on how the White House might pressure the Justice Dept to name a special counsel to investigate Hillary Clinton. 🐍
#Maddow bit.ly/2AXuSLu
#Maddow bit.ly/2AXuSLu
Whitaker frequently spoke by phone with both Trump & CoS John Kelly with no one else on the phone except Whitaker, Trump and/or Kelly. "Who ever heard of a president barely speaking to his AG but constantly on the phone with a staff-level person?”
#Maddow
#Maddow
Trump's Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker "will consult" with senior ethics officials at DOJ about *possible* recusal in Special Counsel investigation. The only reason Trump appointed him was to stymie the Mueller probe. No way he recuses.
#Maddow
#Maddow
In 2016, Trump's acting AG Matt Whitaker abandoned a taxpayer-funded apartment-rehabilitation project in Iowa after years of cost overruns & delays AND defaulted on a separate $700,000 loan.
Tony Soprano ran a similar scam in Season 4, Episode 7.
#Maddow apnews.com/885a44ac279449…
Tony Soprano ran a similar scam in Season 4, Episode 7.
#Maddow apnews.com/885a44ac279449…
Trump's acting AG Matt Whitaker LIED through a DOJ spox, claiming he was unaware of fraudulent activities at a company shut down by the FTC in May for bilking customers – where he was a paid advisory board member AND which he publicly defended.
#Maddow wapo.st/2FkSlKs?tid=ss…
#Maddow wapo.st/2FkSlKs?tid=ss…
Trump's acting AG Matthew Whitaker received more than $1.2 million as the leader of FACT, a conservative nonprofit with obscure roots, undisclosed funders, and no other employees – some of the best pay of Whitaker's sketchy career.
#Maddow @PrincessBravato wapo.st/2FzjHwO?tid=ss…
#Maddow @PrincessBravato wapo.st/2FzjHwO?tid=ss…
NEW: Trump's acting AG Matthew Whitaker revised his financial disclosure form 5 times in the past 13 days [NOV 7- 20].
#Maddow
#Maddow
.@waltshaub @CREWcrew: DOJ told us they were “working on” our request. Turns out, what they were working on was CHANGING Whitaker’s reports — multiple times. We don’t know what they added, deleted or modified. But we’re going to pursue that info.
#Maddow
#Maddow
New documents released by the Federal Trade Commission suggest that Trump's acting AG Matt Whitaker lied to FTC investigators about his actions at World Patent Marketing as he was taking on his role last year as DOJ chief of staff.
by @gregfarrel #Maddow bloom.bg/2U1BbEZ
by @gregfarrel #Maddow bloom.bg/2U1BbEZ
