Perjury Case Against Sessions Gets Stronger

The perjury case against Jeff Sessions just gets stronger and stronger the more often he is forced to testify under oath. Having already lied under oath during the hearings for his appointment as Attorney General and having to "amend the record" when he was caught in that lie, Sessions has apparently suffered severe memory problems ever since.

In his hearings earlier this week, he denied that he had held a meeting with Russians at the Mayflower hotel but admitted that he may have had a brief "encounter" with the Russian ambassador and not remembered. Apparently, press reports indicate that intelligence intercepts show the Russian ambassador reporting that he had met with Sessions on that occasion.

Sessions also denied meeting with any other Russians or people working on behalf of Russia during the campaign but again qualified that statement with phrases like "didn't believe" or "has no recollection" of meeting them.

That denial is farcical on its face because Richard Burt, a lobbyist for Russian interests, has previously admitted that he attended at least two dinners with GOP foreign policy hands where Sessions was in attendance. Burt could not confirm whether Sessions knew he lobbied for Russia. Considering that Burt was reportedly heavily involved in Trump's first foreign policy speech and was lobbying on behalf of an entity controlled by the Russian state-owned energy company, Gazprom, you would think Sessions might have some clue about his role.

What makes Session's claim possibly more ridiculous but perhaps more credible is that Politico reported these dinners with Burt back in October. So Sessions clearly had the opportunity and the obligation in his amended hearing's testimony to research and report these additional meetings as well as include them in his testimony this week. He did not.

It is possible that Sessions is the dumbest man alive, I guess. But his inability to recollect meetings that are in the public record as well as his inability to remember the details of any of the conversations with Russians that he is eventually forced to admit to make it seem like his efforts are focused on minimizing the number and downplaying the significance of any and all contacts that he had with the Russians. It does not appear to be focused on giving an honest and truthful account.