Former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker quietly left the Justice Department this weekend, just three weeks after giving up his top spot to recently confirmed AG William Barr.
A Justice Department spokesman told The Hill that Whitaker’s last day was Saturday but did not expand on the circumstances surrounding his departure or his plans after leaving. It is unclear where Whitaker might go, including whether he might seek another role in the Trump administration.
Whitaker was replaced last month when William Barr was confirmed as attorney general. He became a counselor in the associate attorney general’s office.
Whitaker was elevated to acting attorney general in November after President Donald Trump ousted then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Whitaker was chief of staff to Sessions, who angered the Republican president by recusing himself from the Russia investigation.
Congress still expects Whitaker to come back to Capitol Hill.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said last week that Whitaker would return to clarify his testimony before the committee voluntarily, after alleging that his answers were “unsatisfactory, incomplete or contradicted by other evidence.”
Since Whitaker’s testimony, The New York Times reported that Trump at one point asked Whitaker whether the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman could be put in charge of an investigation there related to campaign finance violations stemming from a scheme to pay off women who alleged affairs with Trump before the 2016 election. Trump has denied doing so and the Justice Department said Whitaker stood by his testimony.
Ex-acting AG Matthew Whitaker leaves Justice Department (AP)
Whitaker out at Justice Department (The Hill)