LULAC Joins Over 100 Members of Congress Calling for the Resignation of Jeff Sessions Amid Allegations of Perjury
March 3, 2017
WASHINGTON, DC - This past week, information from the Department of Justice revealed that Attorney General Jeff Sessions met with Russian officials during the presidential campaign season. However, during his confirmation hearing for U.S. Attorney General, then-Senator Sessions testified under oath that he did not have “any communications with the Russians” during the election campaign season. The evidence has now established that in fact, that statement was false. LULAC finds Senator Sessions’s alleged perjury during his confirmation hearing to be disqualifying for the office and is why we joined over 100 Members of Congress in calling for his resignation.
“During the confirmation hearings, Attorney General Sessions seemingly lied under oath about his conversations with Russian officials," said LULAC National President Roger C. Rocha, Jr. "As the Attorney General, Sessions is responsible for enforcing our nation's laws. His failure to provide truthful information under oath before Congress should disqualify him from serving as the Attorney General. The United States needs an Attorney General whose integrity is unimpeachable, and who is prepared to represent the interests of all Americans. As a result, we call on Attorney General Sessions to resign and ask President Trump to appoint his replacement at the earliest possible time.”
It is also worth noting that his actions during his short tenure as U.S. Attorney General have been most troubling. Sessions has already begun dismantling the enforcement of important civil rights protections that began under the Obama administration. Just this week, he announced that the Department of Justice would limit civil rights lawsuits against police departments, which were critical to exposing racial bias in Ferguson, Missouri and Chicago, Illinois. In addition, Sessions has reversed the Obama-era DOJ decision to reduce reliance on private prisons and rescinded DOJ guidance on protections for transgender students in public schools.
“Attorney General Sessions should resign after he seemingly perjured himself before Congress and demonstrated a complete lack of respect for the law that he is sworn to uphold,” said LULAC National Executive Director Brent Wilkes. “It is also critical to know that during his short tenure, Sessions has demonstrated a complete disregard for protecting the rights of all people. With critical issues like voting rights and immigration enforcement coming up for debate, we need an Attorney General who will fight for the rights of all Americans. Jeff Sessions is not that person.”
In December, LULAC signed on to a letter opposing the nomination of Jeff Sessions for U.S. Attorney General.
### The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.lulac.org.