Kentucky Senator Rand Paul said he supports President Donald Trump's comments regarding Attorney General Jeff Sessions' recusal from the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

The president said Thursday he would not have nominated the former Alabama Senator to serve as AG if he'd been aware Sessions planned to recuse himself in the Russia investigation. The comments led to speculation Sessions would resign, rumors the AG dismissed Thursday.

Paul, who has criticized some of Sessions' leadership at the Justice Department, agreed with Trump.

I agree with @realDonaldTrump, his Attorney General should not have recused himself over reported incidental contacts with Russian officials — Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 20, 2017

Sessions decided to recuse himself after it was reported he met multiple times with the Russian ambassador during the U.S. campaign in which he served as a key Trump advisor. Sessions denied multiple meetings during his confirmation hearings.

In an interview with The New York Times, Trump said Sessions should not have recused himself from the investigation and "if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job, and I would have picked somebody else.

"It's extremely unfair, and that's a mild word, to the president," Trump added.

Paul criticizes Sessions' decisions

Paul, an early candidate for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination, also criticized Sessions' decisions regarding civil asset forfeiture, a practice that allows law enforcement to seize money and property suspected of being used in a crime or obtained illegally.

Sessions announced Wednesday the department plans to step up enforcement of civil asset forfeitures, to which Paul commented:

What I'm most concerned about though is the Attorney General's actions yesterday to push forward with federal asset forfeiture. — Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 20, 2017