After finding out that a special counsel had been appointed to take over the federal investigation into the Trump campaign and Russia, President Trump went off on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, blaming this turn of events on Sessions having recused himself from overseeing the investigation and demanding his resignation, several current and former Trump administration officials told The New York Times.
This is the first time details of the May 17 meeting in the Oval Office, also attended by Vice President Mike Pence and White House counsel Don McGahn, have been published. During the meeting, McGahn received a phone call from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who informed him of his decision to appoint Mueller as special counsel, following pressure from Congress. After he told Trump, the president called Sessions an "idiot" and said choosing him as his attorney general was one of the worst decisions he made.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Women are getting their own baseball league againIn the Spotlight The league is on track to debut in 2026
-
Giant TVs are becoming the next big retail commodityUnder the Radar Some manufacturers are introducing TVs over 8 feet long
-
When will mortgage rates finally start coming down?The Explainer Much to potential homebuyers' chagrin, mortgage rates are still elevated
-
Wyoming judge strikes down abortion, pill bansSpeed Read The judge said the laws — one of which was a first-in-the-nation prohibition on the use of medication to end pregnancy — violated the state's constitution
-
US sanctions Israeli West Bank settler groupSpeed Read The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on Amana, Israel's largest settlement development organization
-
Gaetz ethics report in limbo as sex allegations emergeSpeed Read A lawyer representing two women alleges that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex, and one witnessed him having sex with minor
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in RussiaSpeed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majoritySpeed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summitsSpeed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
-
Senate GOP selects Thune, House GOP keeps JohnsonSpeed Read John Thune will replace Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader, and Mike Johnson will remain House speaker in Congress
-
Trump tests GOP loyalty with Gaetz, Gabbard picksSpeed Read He named Matt Gaetz as his pick for attorney general and Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. Both have little experience in their proposed jurisdictions.
