Moments from now, at 2:30PM EST, former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates and Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper will take the stand before the Senate Judiciary Committee to answer more questions about the alleged “Russian Interference in the 2016 United States Election.”
As we noted earlier, President Trump submitted his question list for the Senate panel earlier this morning via Twitter:
“Ask Sally Yates, under oath, if she knows how classified information got into the newspapers soon after she explained it to W.H. Council.”
Ask Sally Yates, under oath, if she knows how classified information got into the newspapers soon after she explained it to W.H. Counsel.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 8, 2017
Of course, Sally Yates is now most famous for her attempted “mutiny” back in late January when she refused to enforce President Trump’s travel ban executive order. Her insubordination got her fired within a matter of just a few hours and resulted in the following statement from the White House (see “Trump Fires Acting Attorney General Yates For “Betrayal“):
Statement on the Appointment of Dana Boente as Acting Attorney General
The acting Attorney General, Sally Yates, has betrayed the Department of Justice by refusing to enforce a legal order designed to protect the citizens of the United States. This order was approved as to form and legality by the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel.
Ms. Yates is an Obama Administration appointee who is weak on borders and very weak on illegal immigration.
It is time to get serious about protecting our country. Calling for tougher vetting for individuals travelling from seven dangerous places is not extreme. It is reasonable and necessary to protect our country.
Tonight, President Trump relieved Ms. Yates of her duties and subsequently named Dana Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, to serve as Acting Attorney General until Senator Jeff Sessions is finally confirmed by the Senate, where he is being wrongly held up by Democrat senators for strictly political reasons.
“I am honored to serve President Trump in this role until Senator Sessions is confirmed. I will defend and enforce the laws of our country to ensure that our people and our nation are protected,” said Dana Boente, Acting Attorney General.
The Democrats are delaying my cabinet picks for purely political reasons. They have nothing going but to obstruct. Now have an Obama A.G.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 31, 2017
According to a CNN report from last week, Yates is set to testify that she told the White House that Flynn might have misled the administration about the content of his communications with Ambassador Sergey Kislyak weeks before he was finally relieved of his duties by the White House.
Former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates is prepared to testify before a Senate panel next week that she gave a forceful warning to the White House regarding then-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn nearly three weeks before he was fired, contradicting the administration’s version of events, sources familiar with her account tell CNN.
In a private meeting January 26, Yates told White House Counsel Don McGahn that Flynn was lying when he denied in public and private that he had discussed US sanctions on Russia in conversations with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergei Kislyak. Flynn’s misleading comments, Yates said, made him potentially vulnerable to being compromised by Russia, according to sources familiar with her version of events. She expressed “serious concerns” to McGahn, making it clear — without making a recommendation — that Flynn could be fired.
Of course, Trump did subsequently fire Flynn in early February after reports he misled Vice President Pence and other White House officials about his conversations with Kislyak.
Tune in below for the fireworks:
