DOJ panel: Whitaker not required to recuse from overseeing Mueller

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 10:12 AM PT – Sat. Dec 22, 2018

DOJ officials say acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is not required to recuse himself from overseeing the Mueller probe.

This week, the Justice Department sent a letter to Congress laying out the reasoning for his decision.

 

Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker arrives to speak to area law enforcement officials at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas in Austin, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP)

The letter said Whitaker was briefed by a DOJ panel on ethics rules and guidelines.

The panel recommended Whitaker recuse himself, saying his past comments on the probe made the decision a “close call,” but added it ultimately was not a requirement.

The acting AG opted to not follow the advice saying he did not want to create a precedent for recusal in similar situations.