Just when you think Trump can’t sink any lower, he has Jeff Sessions fire former Asst. FBI Director Andrew McCabe a little more than a day before he is eligible to collect his full retirement benefits.
Sessions announced the decision in a statement just before 10 p.m., noting that both the Justice Department Inspector General and the FBI office that handles discipline had found “that Mr. McCabe had made an unauthorized disclosure to the news media and lacked candor — including under oath — on multiple occasions.â€
He said based on those findings and the recommendation of the department’s senior career official, “I have terminated the employment of Andrew McCabe effective immediately.â€
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The move will likely cost McCabe a significant portion of his retirement benefits, though it is possible he could bring a legal challenge. McCabe has been fighting vigorously to keep his job, and on Thursday, he spent nearly four hours inside the Justice Department pleading his case.
Trump had been attacking McCabe for months as part of his war on anyone in law enforcement who is investigating the Trump/Russia relationship. To say that the allegations that the administration leveled against McCabe were dubious would be an understatement.
Remember this moment when someone who is qualified refuses to work in the Trump administration. The reason why Trump can’t get anyone decent or qualified to work in his administration is that the McCabe firing is an example of how he abuses his power.
If Donald Trump can treat the people who work in the government that he is running so poorly, no one should expect him to treat the American people any better.
A small and petty president had to make himself feel big denying McCabe his full retirement benefits, but none of this can derail the inevitable in the Mueller investigation.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
