Acting AG Matthew Whitaker has reportedly been cleared to oversee the Mueller probe by DOJ ethics officials

Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Photo

• Ethics officials at the Department of Justice have reportedly advised Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker that he does not need to recuse himself from overseeing the Russia probe. 
• Whitaker, who has been leading the DOJ since Jeff Sessions’ departure in early November, has been scrutinized over his frequent criticisms of the probe and Mueller’s authority.
• Before joining the DOJ, he argued in the media that Mueller’s investigation had “gone too far,” that Trump could shut down the probe by defunding it, and that a president cannot be guilty of obstruction of justice. 

Ethics officials at the Department of Justice have advised Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker that he does not need to recuse himself from overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, CNN’s Laura Jarrett reported Thursday. 

Whitaker, who has been leading the DOJ since Jeff Sessions’ departure in early November, has been scrutinized over his frequent criticisms of the probe and Mueller’s authority. After Sessions recused himself from overseeing the investigation in spring of 2017, it’s been under the authority of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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