Two top Democrats are pushing for a report on possible disciplinary action against Attorney General Jeff Sessions for his involvement in the firing of FBI Director James Comey, The Hill is reporting.
Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., ranking member of the House Oversight Committee and Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein demanding an explanation for Session's role in President Donald Trump's dismissal of Comey, according to the website.
The two lawmakers claim Sessions may have violated his vow to recuse himself from any ongoing investigations into Russia election meddling, The Hill said.
"Federal law sets forth as a penalty for recusal violations removal from office, and the Attorney General's violation in this case appears to be particularly grave," the letter said.
"Since you are the acting attorney general in this particular matter, we call on you to explain the measures that now may be required to mete out appropriate discipline in this case."
Session's announced his recusal back in March when it was revealed he had not revealed his contacts with Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak, NPR noted.
Some Democrats insist he should have had no say in the Comey firing since the FBI is investigating the Russian election meddling.
"Attorney General Sessions should not have had any involvement in this decision at all," said Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. "He recused himself. And yet he inserted himself in this firing."
But the Justice Department claimed Session's recusal did not bar him from weighing in on the decision to fire Comey, according to NPR.
"The recommendation to remove director Comey was a personnel decision based on concerns about the effectiveness of his leadership," Justice Department spokesman Ian Prior.
"The recommendation had nothing to do with the substance of any investigation."