Attorney General Jeff Sessions will appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday in a public, open session, where he is expected to be asked questions about his role in the firing of FBI Director James Comey, as well as about any contacts with Russian officials during and after the 2016 election campaign.
"Public needs to know more about Sessions' Russia contacts & his role in Comey's firing," tweeted Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR).
The Justice Department had indicated over the weekend that Sessions was ready to testify before the Intelligence Committee, as his previously scheduled appearance to talk about the 2018 budget was scrapped.
What wasn't clear as Monday began was whether Sessions would talk in public, or behind closed doors; his office indicated they wanted an open session - and that's what will happen.
Calls for public testimony by Sessions had increased after last week's appearance before that same panel by Comey, who said that he had not told Sessions about some of the conversations with President Trump had made Comey uneasy about possible White House interference in the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
“We were also aware of facts that I can’t discuss in an open setting that would make his continued engagement in a Russia-related investigation problematic,” Comey said.
It was not immediately clear if those matters are what will be discussed with the Attorney General on Tuesday.
This is not the only hearing this week that will likely include questions about the Russia investigation, as several other top officials could face missives about the probe during hearings this week.
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