The Note: New revelations over Sessions' contact with Russia

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March 2, 2017

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New revelations over Sessions' contact with Russia

The Big Story

It's Russia…again. Last night brought more threads connecting Trump associates and the Kremlin, but it was the bombshell Washington Post report that remains the big one this morning. Attorney General Jeff Sessions met twice with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. during the 2016 campaign when the then-Alabama senator was serving as a close adviser to the campaign. Sessions also did not disclose this information when he was questioned directly about contact with the Russians under oath during his confirmation hearing. At first, the outcry was just that Sessions could not oversee an independent investigation of the Russian influence into the election, but now Democrats are calling on Sessions to resign. Expect those calls to continue today. Sessions said clearly last night in a statement that he "never met with any Russian officials to discuss issues of the campaign," calling the allegation "false." But again - Sessions met twice with Russia's ambassador to the U.S., a matter he did not disclose during his Senate confirmation hearing for attorney general. This new revelation is the latest Russia-related headache for the young Trump administration. Remember, last weekend, Republican Darrell Issa said it was time for an independent investigation. And today, House Oversight chair Jason Chaffetz tweeted that Sessions should "clarify his testimony and recuse himself." Will more Republicans add their name to the chorus today? How much longer can they resist?

The Sleeper Story

What's going on with the plan to 'repeal and replace' Obamacare? It was a critical part of the president's address Tuesday, but there were few details. Yesterday, Senate Republicans were briefed on a current version, but it still seems House and Senate Republicans need to come together on the details. Senate Republicans remained mostly tightlipped leaving that meeting, another sign the sausage is still very much being made. A draft leaked last week was quickly criticized by conservatives. It's clear Republicans don't want to take that chance again.

The Shiny Story

The Dow closed up 303 points yesterday, the first time it has hit the 21,000 mark. The president's address this week may have been short on specifics, but with investors hoping for less regulation and tax cuts, it seems to have impacted this rally. Trump is taking credit for the milestone in a tweet this morning: "Since November 8th, Election Day, the Stock Market has posted $3.2 trillion in GAINS and consumer confidence is at a 15 year high. Jobs!" Despite the difficulties with the beginning of the president's term, if there is job creation and investor confidence, this is something the president and his team can keep coming back to and rightly brag, even with those other issues—like Russia—continuing to mount.

TLDR

News broke last night that Attorney General Jeff Sessions met twice with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. twice while he was involved with the Trump campaign, a matter he did not disclose under oath.