There's a huge flaw in the theory that Trump could replace Jeff Sessions with Scott Pruitt
- Vanity Fair reported Wednesday that President Donald Trump was considering replacing Attorney General Jeff Sessions with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.
- The publication initially wrote that Pruitt wouldn't have to face a confirmation hearing.
- He actually would.
- And that hearing would prove to be brutal.
So there's a massive flaw with the idea that President Donald Trump might oust Attorney General Jeff Sessions and replace him with Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt.
Pruitt, contrary to some initial belief, would have to face a Senate confirmation hearing. Such a hearing would prove to be brutal if Pruitt was tasked with replacing Sessions, who has caught Trump's ire because of his recusal from the Russia investigation being run by special counsel Robert Mueller and overseen by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
On Wednesday, Vanity Fair reported that two Republicans in contact with the White House said there have been discussions that Trump could replace Sessions with Pruitt, who would not be recused from the Russia probe.
Vanity Fair initially wrote that Pruitt would not be subjected to a confirmation hearing since he was already confirmed to his post as head of the EPA, but soon amended the story to note that Pruitt would indeed face another Senate confirmation.
The publication added a line claiming that Pruitt "would presumably have a good shot at passing a Senate confirmation hearing."
But with a slim majority in the Senate and questions about how he would handle oversight of the Mueller probe, Pruitt would be in for one of the toughest confirmations in recent memory.