I keep thinking one of these days, politicians will remember the internet exists, and along with it, evidence of almost about everything they’ve said or done while in office (and often outside of the office, too — just ask David Wu). Alas…
As the Trump cabinet targeting continues, Sen. Claire McCaskill stepped in a huge pile by claiming she never had a meeting or call with a Russian ambassador.
Recently confirmed Attorney General and former Senator Jeff Sessions became the target of what appear to be trumped-up charges that he lied about his involvement with Russia during confirmation hearings. The political media set, along with federally elected Democrats are having a heyday, demanding Sessions resign.
In response to the allegations against AG Sessions, McCaskill’s official account tweeted:
Unfortunately for McCaskill, THE INTERNET KNOWS EVERYTHING.
No meeting, she says?
And no phone call?
Then Sen. McCaskill sort of recanted:
So there were meetings and calls, yes?
WE’RE ALL SPIES NOW:
There’s an obvious double standard at play here. Charles Cooke from NRO sums it up nicely:
The most charitable way to read McCaskill’s tweet is to assume that she was talking about meetings she attended in her capacity as a member of the Armed Services Committee. But if that’s the case, one wonders why she hasn’t extended the same method of interpretation to Jeff Sessions, whom she has called upon to resign on the grounds that he used similarly misleading and ambiguous language during his recent confirmation hearing….Question: If McCaskill’s “no call or meeting” was assumed to inherit her reference to the Armed Services Committee, rather than any other function she might perform, then why isn’t Sessions’s “I did not have communications with the Russians” assumed to inherit Franken’s references to the “campaign” and to “surrogates” (Franken never refers to the Armed Services Committee)? Certainly, Sessions could have been clearer (as could Franken). Arguably, as a lawyer he should know better than to fall into traps such as these. But it seems a stretch to jump from “he screwed that up” to the charges of “perjury” and “treason” and “lying” that we’re hearing now (being under oath doesn’t impart superhuman memory, nor act as a prophylactic against giving ambiguous answers to ambiguous questions). To avoid any appearance of impropriety, Sessions should recuse himself from the Russia investigation. He should give a full account of his communications with Russia, too. But resign? Come now. Let she who is without sin cast the first tweet.
I loathe the tit for tat, he said, she said nature of politics, but pointing out such hypocrisy is crucial when people like Rep. Pelosi and Sen. McCaskill are out for blood.
Follow Kemberlee on Twitter @kemberleekaye
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