News Release

Sessions Questions Yates on Executing Unlawful Actions

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Jeff SessionsCNN reports: “Video of Sally Yates‘ Deputy Attorney General confirmation hearing in 2015 shows Sen. Jeff Sessions — Trump’s pick for the country’s top legal position — grilling her about her responsibility to the then-President, Barack Obama, should he require her to execute ‘unlawful’ views.

‘You have to watch out because people will be asking you to do things and you need to say no. You think the Attorney General has the responsibility to say no to the President if he asks for something that’s improper?’ the Alabama senator asks her… ‘If the views the President wants to execute are unlawful, should the Attorney General or the Deputy Attorney General say no?'”

SUE UDRY, [in D.C]  sue.udry [at] defendingdissent.org, @defenddissent
Udry is executive director of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation.

Udry said today: “When Trump issued an executive order that is clearly designed to stoke fear and hatred toward Muslims under the guise of “national security,” tens of thousands of people expressed their outrage at airports and in the streets. Unsurprisingly, when a voice of protest came from inside the Department of Justice, Trump immediately moved to purge that voice. Sally Yates was confirmed to her post as Deputy Attorney General in 2015 only after she had affirmed to the Senate Judiciary Committee that she would act independently from the President and vowed to uphold the Constitution. That same committee will vote today on Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions, whose fingerprints are all over this executive order. They should remember that they too swore to uphold the Constitution when they took office and vote no.”