Monday on CNN’s “Right Now,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said it was “pretty obvious” acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is not qualified for the job.
On her colleagues challenging the appointment in court, Klobuchar said, “I actually am supportive of what they’re doing. You see two similar cases. One, a Maryland case, and another one heading their way up to the Supreme Court. Basically the argument is that first of all, for such a high-ranking official as the attorney general, the Senate is supposed to advise and consent under the Constitution. The second argument is that the president used this vacancy statute as a reason that he could put in someone who I don’t consider qualified for this job. In fact, there is a more specific law that should apply and that’s a succession statute that basically says you go next to Rod Rosenstein because he’s the deputy.”
She continued, “I think the answer for why Mr. Whitaker is not qualified for the job is pretty obvious. He’s someone who said Marbury v. Madison is not a case that should be respected. That’s pretty damning, to put someone in that job. And then secondly, you look at all of the ways he’s tried to undercut this investigation with his public comments.”
She added, “He said that this investigation was close to crossing a red line. He put out the idea that you should starve the investigation of money as a way of curtailing it. Then he actually said there was no evidence that connected Russia to the Trump campaign, at the same time you have indictments against multiple people, including the campaign chair, in part because of the work he had done in Ukraine with Russia.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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