President Donald Trump is within his rights to appoint Matt Whitaker as interim attorney general, Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah told Fox’s “America’s Newsroom” on Wednesday.
However, he did concede that “there are reasonable arguments on both sides.”
Whitaker had been chief of staff to now-departed Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a position that did not require Senate confirmation. The state of Maryland has challenged Trump’s appointment as unlawful, arguing that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who has been confirmed by the Senate, should not have been skipped over for the top Justice Department job, according to The Hill.
When asked about concerns that Whitaker would interfere in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, Lee told Fox that “I don’t think that’s the legitimate question. Whether the president decides it’s time for a new course correction really is his call and his alone to make. That’s not our call. If they want to quibble about the extent of the president’s power to name an interim attorney general, that’s a different question.”
Lee also said he would not support a law to protect the Mueller probe, because it interferes with Trump’s constitutional authority and undermines the office of the president, explaining that he already voted against similar legislation earlier this year.
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