"I believe the proper thing to do would be to recuse myself from anything involving those investigations related to Secretary Clinton raised on the campaign trail," President-elect Donald Trump 's pick for the nation's top law enforcement position said.

The Alabama Republican told the Senate Judiciary Committee his previous comments about Clinton "could place my objectivity in question."

Sen. Jeff Sessions promised on Tuesday at his confirmation hearing for attorney general that he would remove himself from potential investigations involving Hillary Clinton due to his past statements.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) testifies at a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Sessions to become U.S. attorney general on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S. January 10, 2017.

In response to a follow-up question from Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Sessions said he would remove himself from any probes related to Clinton's handling of classified information while secretary of State or allegations of misconduct at the Clinton Foundation, a nonprofit.



Trump on the campaign trail said he would appoint a special prosecutor to look into Clinton's private email server she used at the State Department. But he later backtracked on the pledge after the election, saying it would be "divisive," despite the mantra at his rallies to "lock her up."

The FBI concluded that Clinton and her team handled classified information carelessly but Director James Comey said no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges in the case. The Obama administration's Justice Department did not bring any charges related to the probe.

In October, Sessions told Fox Business Network he was "uncomfortable with the way the investigation was conducted." He also said it "seems like" the FBI did not fully investigate the Clinton Foundation's conduct, saying that Clinton might have used her position to benefit the foundation.

During his hearing, Sessions was also asked if he participated in the "lock her up" chant that common during Trump's campaign. He said he did not but that he heard it.