Thread by @chrisgeidner

EXCLUSIVE: I finally obtained President Trump's memorandum designating Matthew Whitaker as the acting attorney general. Spoiler: It just raises more questions! buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg… #FOIA

- Sessions left DOJ on Nov. 7.
- DOJ released a statement from "Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker" on Nov. 7.
- Trump appointment memo wasn't dated until Nov. 8.
buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…

- DOJ's Executive Secretariat did not mark its receipt of the memorandum until 11:59 p.m. Nov. 13.
- DOJ released its defense of the legality of Whitaker's appointment on Nov. 14.
buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…

Interestingly, at 11:55 p.m. Nov. 13, I emailed the White House alerting them to the fact that DOJ had directed me to the White House on the question of getting a copy of the appointment order. Four minutes later, DOJ logged the memo as received. buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…

I asked the White House three follow-up questions:
1. When did DOJ receive notice from the White House that Trump had signed the Whitaker appointment memo, and could you please provide information backing that up?
buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…

2. When did the White House provide DOJ or Whitaker with a copy of his appointment memo?
3. Under what authority was Whitaker serving as acting AG on Nov. 7, or, alternatively, was he not serving as acting AG then?
buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…

NOTE: Apologies to @weareoversight, who apparently obtained this letter via FOIA after we filed our FOIA lawsuit but before DOJ turned over the letter to us today. americanoversight.org/document/white…

I’ve been asking for, looking for, and (eventually) suing for this letter since beginning the weekend of Whitaker’s appointment, so, trust me, had I seen this at that point I would have noted it/written about it then.

In any event, it doesn’t appear hardly anyone had seen the letter until today, so check it out — and the questions raised by it remain. buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisg…