Attorney General Jeff Sessions may not have been clear about his contacts with Russian officials during the 2016 election, but this much is evident: The controversy over any Kremlin involvement in American politics is not going to fade away anytime soon.

Sessions on Thursday became the second high-ranking member of the Trump administration to take a hit over conversations with Russia's envoy to the U.S., recusing himself from any probe that examines communications between Trump aides and Moscow. An early backer and key adviser for Trump's campaign, Sessions said his staff recommended that he step aside from a probe.

"I feel I should not be involved in investigating a campaign I had a role in," he said.

Sessions' action followed revelations that he twice spoke with the Russian ambassador and didn't say so when pressed, under oath, by Congress. Though he rejected any suggestion that he tried to mislead anyone, he did allow that he should have been more careful in his testimony.

"I should have slowed down and said, 'But I did meet one Russian official a couple of times,'" he said.

The recusal, despite White House support for him, followed a chorus of demands that Sessions resolve the seeming contradiction between his two conversations with Moscow's U.S. envoy, Sergey Kislyak, and his statements to Congress in January that he had not communicated with Russians during the campaign. It carried echoes of a similar controversy involving retired Gen. Michael Flynn, who two weeks ago resigned as national security adviser after misleading White House officials about his own discussions with Kislyak.

Additional communication was revealed Thursday between Kislyak and Flynn and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, at New York's Trump Tower. In addition, Carter Page, a former foreign policy adviser to Trump's presidential campaign, spoke with the ambassador last summer, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said contacts with officials and lawmakers are part of any ambassador's duties and that pressure on Sessions "strongly resembles a witch hunt or the times of McCarthyism, which we thought were long over in the United States as a civilized country."

Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s led a hunt for communist traitors he believed worked in the government and the army.

The recusal means the attorney general should not receive any briefings on it and have no information to provide to Congress or the public. But Sessions' decision to leave the matter in the hands of a top deputy may not cool demands that someone from outside the department provide a fully independent set of eyes.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said a special prosecutor should be appointed to examine whether the federal investigation had been compromised by Sessions. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who had accused Sessions of "lying under oath," repeated her call for his resignation after he recused himself and assailed his integrity.

"There must be an independent, bipartisan, outside commission to investigate the full extent of the Trump political, personal and financial connections to the Russians," she said.

Trump laid the controversy at the feet of Democrats, saying they were just trying to save face. "The Democrats are overplaying their hand," the president said in a statement. "They lost the election and now, they have lost their grip on reality. The real story is all of the illegal leaks of classified and other information. It is a total witch hunt!"

The Justice Department acknowledged Sessions' contacts Wednesday night following a report in The Washington Post, but maintained there was nothing improper about them or his answers to Congress. Still, the emergence of the additional potential of Russian interference in American politics and the omission of the meetings caused more than a half-dozen Republican lawmakers, including some who consider themselves personally close to Sessions, to urge him to recuse himself.

Republican Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, who said that though he found it impossible to believe that Sessions could have colluded with Russia, "if there is an investigation, he probably shouldn't be the person leading it."

While there is nothing necessarily nefarious or even unusual about a member of Congress meeting with a foreign ambassador, typically members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee meet with foreign ambassadors, not Armed Services Committee lawmakers, whose responsibility is oversight of the military and the Pentagon. Congressional contact with Russian officials was limited after the invasion of Crimea and due to Moscow's close relationship with Syria.

The Justice Department acknowledged two separate interactions Sessions had with Kislyak. Both interactions came after cybersecurity firms had concluded that Russian intelligence agencies were behind the hacking of the Democratic National Committee.

The first occurred after a Heritage Foundation event during the Republican National Convention in July, when the department says a group of envoys — including the Russian ambassador — approached Sessions. The second was a September conversation, which the department likened to the more than 25 discussions Sessions had with foreign ambassadors last year as a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

But Sessions did not disclose his discussions with Kislyak at his Senate confirmation hearing in January when asked by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., what he would do if "anyone affiliated" with the campaign had been in contact with officials of the Russian government.

Sessions said, "I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I didn't have, did not have communications with the Russians, and I'm unable to comment on it."

In a separate written questionnaire, he answered "no" when asked about contacts regarding the election.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Republican and Democratic leaders alike, including from our state, are weighing in on the controversy surrounding Attorney General Jeff Sessions, after revelations he had contact with the Russian Ambassador to the U.S. during last year's White House campaign.

Late Thursday afternoon, Sessions said he would recuse himself from a federal investigation into Russian interference in the election, while saying he didn't lie when he testified during his confirmation hearing that he had no interaction with Russians during the 2016 election campaign.

President Donald Trump told reporters today he has "total" confidence in Sessions.

Several hours later, the attorney general told reporters he should not be involved in investigating a presidential campaign he had a role in.

Sessions rejected any suggestion that he tried to mislead anyone about his contacts with the Russians.

Our two local congressmen are speaking out.

Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) says he believes Sessions did the right thing in stepping aside. "He said in the interview that he was not, nothing came up about the campaign. You have to assume that til you can prove that's not true. So you give the attorney general the benefit of the doubt."

"If we find that Russia interfered with this election last year, then there needs to be consequences both for Russia and for those within the Donald Trump administration found to be responsible," says Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC).

During Thursday's press conference, Sessions continued to draw a distinction between his conversations with the Russian ambassador in his role as a senator and his role in the Trump campaign.

He also admitted that he "should have slowed down" and said "but I did meet with one Russian official a couple of times."

Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente will handle any matters related to investigation.

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WASHINGTON (AP) - Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he should not be involved in investigating a presidential campaign he had a role in.

Sessions made the comment at a Thursday news conference where he announced he will recuse himself from any investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. The move came after revelations that Sessions twice spoke to the Russia's ambassador to the U.S. during the presidential campaign.

Sessions rejected any suggestion that he tried to mislead anyone about his contacts with the Russian, saying, "That is not my intent. That is not correct."

But he says he "should have slowed down and said 'but I did meet with one Russian official a couple of times.' "

Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente will handle any matters related to investigation.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he didn't lie when he testified during his confirmation hearing that he had no interaction with Russians during the 2016 election campaign.

At a news conference Thursday, he continued to draw a distinction between his conversations with the Russian ambassador in his role as a senator and his role in the Trump campaign.

Still, Sessions is recusing himself from a federal investigation into Russian interference in the election. He says he is doing so at the urging of senior career officials in the Justice Department.

Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente will handle any matters related to the investigation.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he will recuse himself from a federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election.

Sessions faced mounting pressure from both Democrats and Republicans to step aside after revelations that he had twice talked with Moscow's U.S. envoy during the presidential campaign. Sessions' conversations with the ambassador seem to contradict his sworn statements to Congress during his confirmation hearings.

The Justice Department said there was nothing improper about the meetings. Sessions insisted he never met with Russian officials to discuss the campaign.

Sessions said this week he would recuse himself when appropriate.

When attorneys general have recused themselves in the past, investigations were handled by lower-ranking but still senior political-appointees within the Justice Department.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions will hold a news conference amid scrutiny over contacts with the Russian ambassador.

A growing number of Republicans joined Democratic leaders on Thursday in calling for Sessions to step aside from an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election.

Top Democrats demanded that Sessions resign as the nation's top law enforcement officer after the revelation that he had twice talked with Moscow's U.S. envoy during the campaign. Sessions' conversations with Ambassador Sergey Kislyak seem to contradict Sessions' sworn statements to Congress during his confirmation hearings.

President Donald Trump says he has "total" confidence in the attorney general. Asked if Sessions should recuse himself, he said "I don't think so."

WITN.com will stream the news conference here live at 4:00 p.m.

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President Donald Trump says he has "total" confidence in Attorney General Jeff Sessions as calls mount for the attorney general to resign or recuse himself over his contact with a Russian envoy.

Trump made the comment in Newport News Thursday. Asked if Sessions should recuse himself, he said "I don't think so."

Democrats are demanding that Sessions resign after the revelation that he had twice talked with Moscow's envoy to the U.S. during the campaign.

Sessions' conversations with the ambassador seem to contradict his sworn statements to Congress during his confirmation hearings.

Some Republicans are joining Democrats in calling on Sessions to step aside from a federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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A growing number of Republicans joined Democratic leaders on Thursday in calling for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to step aside from an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election.

Top Democrats demanded that Sessions resign as the nation's top law enforcement officer after the revelation that he had twice talked with Moscow's U.S. envoy during the campaign. Sessions' conversations with Ambassador Sergey Kislyak seem to contradict Sessions' sworn statements to Congress during his confirmation hearings.

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi accused Sessions of "lying under oath," and she and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Sessions should step down. Schumer said the Justice Department to appoint a special prosecutor to examine the federal investigation into the Kremlin's meddling in the U.S. election has been compromised by Sessions.

"There's nothing wrong with meeting with the Russian ambassador. If there was nothing wrong, why don't you just tell the truth?" Schumer told reporters. "It was definitely extremely misleading to say the least"

The conversations that Sessions had with Kislyak seem to contradict sworn statements Sessions gave to Congress during his confirmation hearings.

"I have said that, when it's appropriate, I will recuse myself" from the investigation, Sessions told MSNBC on Thursday.

At least three Republicans — Reps. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, Darrell Issa of California and Tom Cole of Oklahoma — have said they want Sessions to withdraw from the inquiry.

The attorney general "is going to need to recuse himself at this point," Chaffetz, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told MSNBC.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, said he thought Sessions "needs to clarify what these meetings were." He said it isn't unusual for members of Congress to meet with ambassadors, but he added that if a question arose about the integrity of a federal investigation, "I think it'd be easier" for an attorney general to step away,

Sessions, an early supporter of President Donald Trump's candidacy and a policy adviser during the campaign, did not disclose those discussions at his Senate confirmation hearing in January when asked what he would do if "anyone affiliated" with the campaign had been in contact with officials of the Russian government.

Sessions replied that he had not had communications with the Russians.

In a statement late Wednesday, Sessions said: "I never met with any Russian officials to discuss issues of the campaign. I have no idea what this allegation is about. It is false."

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said "there was absolutely nothing misleading about his answer."

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders earlier called the disclosure of the talks with Kislyak as "the latest attack against the Trump administration by partisan Democrats." She said Sessions "met with the ambassador in an official capacity as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, which is entirely consistent with his testimony."

Sessions had more than 25 conversations with foreign ambassadors last year in his role as a U.S. senator and senior member of the Armed Services Committee, and had two separate interactions with Kislyak, the department confirmed.

One was a visit in September in his capacity as a senator, similar to meetings with envoys from Britain, China, Germany and other nations, the department said.

The other occurred in a group setting following a Heritage Foundation speech that Sessions gave during the summer, when several ambassadors — including the Russian ambassador — approached Sessions after the talk as he was leaving the stage.

Revelations of the contacts, first reported by The Washington Post, came amid a disclosure by three administration officials that White House lawyers have instructed aides to Trump to preserve materials that could be connected to Russian meddling in the American political process.

The officials who confirmed that staffers were instructed to comply with preservation-of-materials directions did so on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly disclose the memo from White House counsel Don McGahn.

At the confirmation hearing in January, Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., asked Sessions about allegations of contact between Russia and Trump aides during the 2016 election. He asked Sessions what he would do if there were evidence that anyone from the Trump campaign had been in touch with the Russian government during the campaign.

Sessions replied he was "unaware of those activities."

Then he added: "I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I didn't have, did not have communications with the Russians, and I'm unable to comment on it."

Flores, the Justice Department spokeswoman, said that response was not misleading.

"He was asked during the hearing about communications between Russia and the Trump campaign — not about meetings he took as a senator and a member of the Armed Services Committee," she said in a statement.

Franken said in a statement he was troubled that the new attorney general's response to his question was "at best, misleading." He said he planned to press Sessions on his contact with Russia.

"It's clearer than ever now that the attorney general cannot, in good faith, oversee an investigation at the Department of Justice and the FBI of the Trump-Russia connection, and he must recuse himself immediately," Franken said.

Separately in January, Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Judiciary Committee Democrat, asked Sessions in a written questionnaire whether "he had been in contact with anyone connected to any part of the Russian government about the 2016 election, either before or after election day."

Sessions replied simply, "No."

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions denied meeting with Russian officials during the course of the presidential election to discuss the Trump campaign, he told NBC News in exclusive remarks early Thursday.

"I have not met with any Russians at any time to discuss any political campaign," he said, "and those remarks are unbelievable to me and are false. And I don't have anything else to say about that."

Sessions was also asked whether he would step aside from investigating alleged ties between Trump's surrogates and intermediaries for the Russian government, which Democrats and some Republicans have demanded.

"I have said whenever it's appropriate, I will recuse myself," he said. "There's no doubt about that."

Sessions' spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday night that he had met with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. before the presidential election last year in his capacity as a then-senator — raising questions about whether he misled fellow senators during his attorney general confirmation hearing in January.

Spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores told NBC News that Sessions, who was a prominent Trump surrogate, did have a conversation with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak last year. The meeting was first reported by The Washington Post.

Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., questioned Sessions during his confirmation hearing about whether he or anyone affiliated with the Trump campaign spoke with the Russians last year.

"I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign, and I did not have communications with the Russians, and I'm unable to comment on it," Sessions responded at the time.

Flores said "there was absolutely nothing misleading about his answer" because Sessions was asked about "communications between Russia and the Trump campaign" and not about meetings he took as a senator with the Armed Services Committee.

Sessions had a private meeting with the Russian ambassador last September as part of his capacity as a senator, the Justice Department told NBC News.

The other encounter came after he gave a speech during a Heritage Foundation event in July during the Republican National Convention, and a group of ambassadors approached him. He did not have a one-on-one meeting with the Russians at the time, the Justice Department said.

Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, also a member of the Armed Services Committee, was among the Democrats questioning why Sessions would even meet with the Russian ambassador.

"I've been on the Armed Services Com for 10 years. No call or meeting w/Russian ambassador. Ever," she tweeted Thursday.

Democrats have called for a select committee or special prosecutor to delve further into claims of Russian interference in November's election and whether the Russians yielded influence on the campaign in favor of the Republican nominee Donald Trump. Most Republican lawmakers have stopped short of demanding an investigation.

But questions have been mounting over Russia, from initial allegations that Moscow meddled in the November election to reports that Trump's presidential campaign staffers had contact with the Russians to former national security adviser Mike Flynn resigning over his contact with the Russian ambassador.

During the election, Trump praised Russian President Vladimir Putin. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson also has close ties to Putin, and Trump's former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, resigned in August amid questions about his links with pro-Russian interests in Ukraine.

If Sessions were to be called as a potential witness in any investigation, he must decide whether to recuse himself in the case, appoint a special prosecutor or do nothing.

Franken said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Thursday that Sessions' comments were "at best extremely misleading" and he must clarify them in a press conference.

"Then we can see if he should resign or not," said Franken, who supports Sessions recusing himself from any investigation.

House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., also said on "Morning Joe" that he thought Sessions should recuse himself from Russia-linked investigations.

"I just think for any investigation going forward, it would be easier," McCarthy said.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, also a member of the Armed Services Committee, came out in defense of Sessions, and branded the brewing controversy as a "nothingburger" on "Morning Joe."

Cruz said he has met with six different ambassadors in the last two months, although none were with Russia.

"I know that meeting with a foreign ambassador is part of the routine," Cruz said, adding "there isn't any credible allegations that Jeff did anything wrong meeting with a Russian ambassador."

But Richard Painter, who served as the chief White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2007, tweeted a warning to Sessions late Wednesday: "Misleading the Senate in sworn testimony about one own contacts with the Russians is a good way to go to jail."