A senior Republican lawmaker on Friday agreed that a special prosecutor should investigate Russia’s alleged interference with the 2016 presidential election. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) became one of the few Republican representatives to state publicly the need for an independent investigation into Russia’s reported election meddling. This comes as Democrats have increasingly pushed for an investigation into President Trump’s associates’ ties to Russia. In an appearance on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Issa, a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, first told the progressive show host that House and Senate intelligence committees would look into Russia’s activities “within the special areas they oversee.” That was not sufficient for Maher, who pressed Issa — formerly the head of the House Oversight Committee — on whether he would have “let that slide” had similar suspicions arose involving the Democrats. Maher has been a vocal critic of Trump. … Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), echoing other Democrats, has said that “the appearance of bias is unavoidable” if Sessions does not recuse himself in an independent investigation. Sessions indicated during the confirmation process that he would not recuse himself during any investigations involving Trump.
“If merely being a supporter of the President’s during the campaign warranted recusal from involvement in any matter involving [Trump], then most typical presidential appointees would be unable to conduct their duties,” Sessions told Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) in written responses to the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to Politico.
On Friday, however, Issa seemed to agree with Maher that Sessions should not be involved in an investigation.
“You’re right, you cannot have somebody, a friend of mine, Jeff Sessions, who was on the campaign and who was an appointee,” he said. “You’re going to need to use the special prosecutor’s statute and office.”
Full Article: Top Republican says special prosecutor should investigate Russian meddling in Trump’s election – The Washington Post.