Story highlights Washington buzzes with speculation about Attorney General Jeff Sessions' fate

This follows intense criticism of Sessions by his boss, President Donald Trump

(CNN) A Democratic senator is sending a letter to the Justice Department, asking whether Attorney General Jeff Sessions violated his recusal from investigations into the 2016 presidential election when he recommended the firing of former FBI Director James Comey.

Sen. Chris Coons, who sits on the Senate judiciary committee, will send the letter Thursday to the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility, requesting more information about the scope of Sessions' pledges of recusal.

The letter comes as Washington buzzes with speculation about Sessions' fate following ramped-up attacks from President Donald Trump , who's criticized his own attorney general in scathing tweets and public interviews.

Coons' letter, along with comments from Trump, illustrates the pressure that Sessions is facing from opposing sides -- from Democrats who felt he was not strong enough in his recusal, to the President, who felt he should not have recused himself at all.

Sessions, during a January confirmation hearing, offered to recuse himself from any investigations involving the Hillary Clinton email scandal.

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