Lawyer for conservative causes confirms he is attorney general's personal lawyer
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Photo by Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons.
When U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions attended a congressional hearing last week, there was a lawyer by his side.
The lawyer, Charles Cooper, has confirmed he is Sessions’ personal lawyer, but he didn’t comment on the nature of the representation, the National Law Journal (sub. req.) and USA Today report.
Cooper is a well-known Republican lawyer and advocate for conservative causes, according to the articles. He is a friend of Sessions’ who advised him during his confirmation hearing in January.
It’s unknown whether the representation extends to the special counsel’s investigation of Russian influence, the National Law Journal reports. “But a continuing attorney-client relationship between the attorney general and a private lawyer could signal they expect additional perilous legal questions—including from Robert Mueller III’s special counsel investigation,” the article says.
Sessions recused himself from any investigation into the presidential campaign in March after revelations he met twice last year with the Russian ambassador but didn’t disclose the meetings during his confirmation hearings.
During last week’s hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sessions said his meetings with the Russian ambassador had nothing to do with the campaign. Any suggestion he colluded with Russian officials is “an appalling and detestable lie,” Sessions said.
Cooper had been under consideration for solicitor general but he withdrew himself for consideration, citing partisan treatment of Sessions.
