Top Dem Repeatedly Cuts Off Sessions During Hearing

"The suggestion that I participated in any collusion ... is an appalling and detestable lie", Sessions said.

Sessions is enmeshed in multiple lines of ongoing inquiry: He had meetings with Russian officials that later forced him to recuse himself from the Justice Department's probe of the Trump campaign's ties to Russia.

"I have no knowledge of any such conversations by anyone connected to the Trump campaign", he added.

Rosenstein said he would agree to dismiss Mueller only if there were a legitimate basis to do so, and an order from the president would not necessarily qualify.

Although Sessions, a genteel 70-year-old from the southern state of Alabama, backed Trump's campaign, he was also one of the first administration officials to fly into turbulence.

Warner asked Sessions for a commitment to testify before his committee when asked. "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", end quote. Comey testified that in the privacy of the Oval Office, the President asked him to let the investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn drop. The FBI is part of the Justice Department that Sessions heads. "I don't know, Sen". The Justice Department has denied that, saying Sessions stressed to Comey the need to be careful about following appropriate policies.

Even before Sessions testified, attention in Washington swivelled to whether Trump might seek to fire Robert Mueller, named last month by the Justice Department to head a federal probe into the Russian Federation issue.

Trump has expressed frustration with Sessions, one of his earliest high-profile campaign backers, who has recused himself from investigations into alleged Russian interference in last year's election, and possible collusion with the Trump campaign.

The top Democrat on the House Intelligence committee says Congress would not sit still if President Donald Trump made a decision to fire the special counsel leading the investigation into Russian interference in the US election and possible collusion with Trump's campaign. He does not acknowledge the unanimous conclusions of the US intelligence community that Russian Federation massively intervened in our election.

Sessions declined to comment on those reports, stating only that he had "confidence" in Mueller and that it would not be appropriate for him to fire the special counsel. And last week, fired FBI Director James Comey testified in a closed-door meeting with the senators that Sessions may have had an undisclosed third meeting with the Russian ambassador.

Rosenstein said that if he fired Mueller, he would be required to explain it in writing. Given that as Federal Bureau of Investigation director Comey was overseeing the Russian Federation probe, the firing has led to questions about potential obstruction of justice.

Comey, during his testimony to the Senate, hinted there might be more to Sessions' recusal.

Joseph Yun, the USA envoy on North Korea, met with North Korean foreign ministry representatives in Norway last month, a White House official said. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the person who would be responsible for carrying out any such dismissal, told a different congressional panel on Tuesday he would not fire Mueller without good cause and he had seen no such cause.

Presidents have argued in order to do their jobs well, aides must feel comfortable giving them candid advice. "I think he's weighing that option", Chris Ruddy, chief executive of Newsmax, told the PBS News Hour, speaking of Trump.

Mueller also won votes of support Tuesday from the top two Republicans in Congress, House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, both of whom said they have confidence in him.