Jeff Sessions repeatedly refused Thursday to answer whether he spoke to Donald Trump about the Russia investigation as they weighed the dismissal of James Comey. Only problem—Sessions had no legal authority to decline to answer that question.
Sessions even explicitly stated during his testimony that Trump had not invoked executive privilege that would keep him from answering certain questions regarding his conversations with the president. That's where independent Sen. Angus King picks up the inquiry:
King: Has the president invoked executive privilege in the case of your testimony here today?
Sessions: He has not.
King: Then what is the basis of your refusal to answer these questions?
Sessions: Senator King, the president has a constitutional --
King: I understand that, but the president hasn't asserted it. You said you don't have the power to assert the power of executive privilege, so what is the legal basis for your refusal to answer these questions?
Sessions: I'm protecting the right of the president to assert it if he chooses. And there may be other privileges that could apply in this circumstance.
King: I don't understand how you can have it both ways. The president can't not assert it—You testified that only the president can assert it and yet—I just don't understand the legal basis for your refusal to answer.
Sessions went on to say that he was protecting the president's "right" to invoke executive privilege.
Wow, in other words, inverse executive privilege—I'm making sure to shield our conversations from plain view in case the president later decides he wants them hidden.
Isn't that thoughtful... and what a load of total B.S.
This is becoming a very troublesome pattern with Trump officials—they simply don't answer questions when they don't feel like it, without citing any legal authority whatsoever. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and CIA director Mike Rogers both pulled that exact same stunt last week.
At one point, Sessions had the gall to give this explanation for not answering: "It's my judgment..."
There's your new legal authority, folks. This, from our nation’s top law enforcement official.