Watch Savannah Guthrie corner Sarah Huckabee Sanders over Trump's attacks on the Justice Department

Samantha Guthrie and Sarah Huckabee Sanders clash.
(Image credit: Screenshot/BusinessInsiderNordic)

On Tuesday's Today show, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders set out to tout the "historic" first year of the Trump administration. There have been "record-breaking moments throughout the year," Sanders raved, listing tax cuts, immigration reform, and gains against the Islamic State as successes. She did not mention the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, so Today host Savannah Guthrie did the honors.

"As you well know, the deputy director of the FBI, Andrew McCabe, abruptly resigned yesterday, earlier than expected," Guthrie said. "Was [President Trump] happy to see Andrew McCabe go?" Sanders conceded that Trump had "frustrations" with McCabe, but insisted that the president was focused on "bringing the country together" through his first State of the Union address, which he will deliver Tuesday night.

Guthrie did not let Sanders pivot so easily. "Back to the Russia investigation," she said. "The president has said there's no collusion, there's nothing wrong here. ... If there's nothing to see here and he's innocent, why does he go after all the Justice Department officials connected to the Russia investigation? Doesn't it, at a minimum, look bad?"

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Sanders pointed out that Trump hasn't fired Special Counsel Robert Mueller and said the administration has "volunteered thousands upon thousands of documents." She also claimed that "time and time again," the Russia investigation has yielded no proof of wrongdoing. Later, she added: "Imagine how many more good things for the country we would've been able to do this past year if everybody hadn't been so focused on this Russia hoax."

Guthrie wasn't convinced: "The press focuses on [the Russia investigation], but that's because the president's focused on it and tweeting about it." Watch the interview below.Kelly O'Meara Morales

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Kelly O'Meara Morales

Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.