A somewhat testy exchange occurred during Monday's White House press briefing about whether President Donald Trump thinks he is above the law.
Peter Alexander of NBC News began the brief but tense exchange by asking White House press secretary Sarah Sanders about Trump's Monday morning tweet that claimed he has the right to pardon himself.
"Does the president believe that he is above the law?" Alexander asked.
"Certainly not," Sanders said. "The president hasn't done anything wrong."
The line of questioning was in regards to the Department of Justice's Russia investigation, which is looking at whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia.
Alexander interrupted Sanders during her response and said, "The question isn't if he's done anything wrong. I guess the question is, does the president believe the framers envisioned a system where the president could pardon himself, where the president could be above the law?"
Sanders said, "Certainly, the Constitution very clearly lays out the law. And once again, the president hasn't done anything wrong, and we feel very comfortable on that front."
Alexander continued to push for more information.
"I know, but you just a moment ago said it's not that clear. So I guess simply put, does the president believe he is above the law?" he asked.
"Certainly no one is above the law," replied Sanders, who then tried to move on to the next reporter.
Alexander kept trying to ask another follow-up, but Sanders would not relent.
"I just wanna ask, this is an important one. I'll just keep asking if I can," Alexander said.
Sanders, who was talking over him, replied, "Peter, no you can't, actually."
Alexander protested for another few seconds before giving up and letting the next reporter ask a question.
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