# 99% of Trump's Popularity is SESSIONS--and Trump Knows It **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 27, 2017, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292 "2017-07-27T23:16:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2017, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/1 "2017-07-27T23:16:17Z")
Sessions’ work, of course, as Attorney General—not Sessions as a person. This has become crystal clear in the eight days since Trump started attacking Sessions and trying to get him to quit—trying to get him to quit so that the coward Trump wouldn’t have to fire him. Because if the coward Trump fired Sessions, the entire world would see that most of Trump’s so-called base wants nothing to do with a Trump who fires their REAL hero: Jeff Sessions. We can see this is so via two useful windows on right-wing thinking: [ul] [li]the reaction of the GOP politicians and the conservative pundits to Trump’s attacks on Sessions; [/li][li]the almost-universal responses of Trump voters to interviewers’ questions on why they still support Trump. [/ul][/li]First, the ‘establishment’ response: Though there have been more and more conservative pundits willing to speak out against Trump as time has gone by, this last week has seen a marked uptick in critical remarks. > [@](#): > > A number of outside conservative and law enforcement groups also voiced support for Sessions, including the Family Research Council, the Tea Party Patriots and the National Sheriffs’ Association. … Sessions also got a boost from NumbersUSA, which advocates reduced immigration and has long fought alongside Sessions. The conservative news outlet Breitbart, one of Trump’s biggest promoters during the 2016 presidential campaign, also appeared to side with Sessions over the president, warning that Trump is endangering his immigration agenda by going after Sessions. [http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/25/lindsey-graham-jeff-sessions-trump-criticism-240935](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/25/lindsey-graham-jeff-sessions-trump-criticism-240935) > [@](#): > > Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham joined a number of well-known Republicans in defending Attorney General Jeff Sessions over President Donald Trump’s ongoing criticism of Sessions Wednesday. > > Graham is just one of the many conservative voices that have publicly taken Sessions’ side, telling Politico he called the attorney general and told him to “hang in there.” > “I think he should keep Jeff Sessions. And I think he ought to quit publicly maligning him,” Gingrich said on NPR early Wednesday. “I think that Jeff Sessions, in fact, was one of his earliest and most loyal supporters. I think Jeff Sessions is a solid conservative. I think, yeah, you can argue either way. I mean, even a guy like Rudy Giuliani, who’s very pro-Trump, said he would have recused himself.” > DeMint thinks Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stay right where he is in his job, according to an interview with The Daily Caller News Foundation Tuesday. > “It would be very disappointing if Sessions left,” DeMint said about the possibility of President Donald Trump demanding his resignation. “I can understand the president’s frustrations, seriously. With the recusal, with the fact that this Russian thing continues to go on.” > Blackwell, who worked on Trump’s transition team said, “As someone who has worked with Attorney General Sessions most recently on President Trump’s transition team, I cannot speak highly enough about General Sessions credentials and integrity as the nation’s top law enforcement officer or about his loyalty to President Trump.” > **[More GOP Leaders Continue To Defend Sessions](https://dailycaller.com/2017/07/27/more-gop-leaders-continue-to-defend-sessions/)** > > Sen. Lindsey Graham joined a number of Republicans in defending Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday over President Trump's criticism of Sessions. > [@](#): > > Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., one of the many GOP lawmakers furious over Trump’s escalating attacks on Sessions, let the president know in no uncertain terms that cutting the former Alabama senator loose from his Cabinet would be met with repercussions. > “There will be no confirmation hearing for a new attorney general in 2017. If Jeff Sessions is fired, there will be holy hell to pay,” said Graham, who has been critical of Trump. > “This effort to basically marginalize and humiliate the attorney general is not going over well in the Senate,” he added. “I don’t think it’s going over well in the conservative world.” > “If you believe Jeff Sessions should be fired, use the power you have and accept the consequences,” Graham warned. ['Holy Hell To Pay': Graham Warns Trump on Firing Sessions](http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/holy-hell-pay-graham-warns-trump-firing-sessions-n787086) > [@](#): > > Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, one of Trump’s top allies in the Senate, said he hopes Trump will treat Sessions “with respect.” > "The president is a person with deep emotions,” Hatch said. “Sometimes he says things that I’m sure afterwards he wishes he hasn’t said just like the rest of us. [http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/25/lindsey-graham-jeff-sessions-trump-criticism-240935](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/25/lindsey-graham-jeff-sessions-trump-criticism-240935) None of this will be pleasing to Trump. It’s true that these conservatives are refraining from outright insults to Trump, but they aren’t being shy about supporting the guy Trump is attacking…and that’s the sort of thing that Trump apparently sees as “disloyalty.” (Trump has a recent history of threatening the seats of members of Congress who displease him–links in a later post, to keep this one less long.) The second useful window on the dependency of Trump’s “popularity” on the continued presence and work of Jeff Sessions: the way Trump voters answer when asked why they support their President. Time and time again, those voters will offer variations on the following: > [@](#): > > “It’s only 100 days,” said Christy Facciponti, 54, a former engineer at Bethlehem Steel, who was flying a Trump flag outside her home in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, last week. “Please, give him a second. **He’s already done more than Obama ever did**.” > > Back down south, in Bethlehem, D’Ambrosio, the barber, pointed out a bumper sticker someone had left on his car, which already had a Trump sticker. The anonymously gifted sticker read: “Trump 2016: **Finally someone with balls!** ” > > “He jumped in polls,” the barber said. “Why did he jump in polls? Because he showed strength.” > > “Everywhere I go, [I ask] what do you think of Trump?’ And over and over again, the people who voted for him say ‘Hey, I voted for him, I’m still thinking what he’s doing is right.’ [Would Trump supporters elect him again now? | US news | The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/apr/25/trump-supporters-elect-again-100-days) > [@](#): > > “You know, I’m so tired of people beatin’ on Donald Trump. Donald Trump made us promises. He kept them. And that’s the type of new leadership that we need,” one man interjected. > **[Trump voters talk Russia probe and the progress president has made](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-voters-discuss-presidents-performance-progress-frank-luntz/)** > > Almost half a year into his presidency, the president's supporters​​ are calling him "honest," "effective," "productive" and "a tough S.O.B." When pressed, the only “kept promise” these interviewees seem willing to specify is the successful Supreme Court nomination of a conservative–which is, undeniably, a kept promise. But the rest is vague: “strength;” “someone with balls;” “what he’s doing is right.” What _is_ he doing? Well, not much. But someone who IS doing something is Jeff Sessions: hammer of the non-whites, hammer of the gays (news out today), and quite possibly soon to be known as hammer of the non-Christians. It’s all good to Trump voters: it’s what they like about “what Trump’s doing.” Trump isn’t doing it. Sessions is doing it: Deporting non-violent immigrants: > [@](#): > > [http://wtnh.com/2017/07/19/rally-held-in-new-haven-for-norwalk-mother-set-to-be-deported/](http://wtnh.com/2017/07/19/rally-held-in-new-haven-for-norwalk-mother-set-to-be-deported/) > Norwalk mother to be deported to Guatemala on Thursday – A Norwalk mother who has lived here for 24 years is now set to be deported, leaving behind her four children. “I came here for a better life and you know, 24 years later, I have my four kids. I’m always working. I pay taxes. I’ve been here busy with my kids, help them,” she said. > > [Virginia Mother Deported to El Salvador – NBC4 Washington](http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Virginia-Mother-Deported-to-El-Salvador-429753233.html) > Virginia Mother Deported to El Salvador > Local immigration organization “heartbroken” for her two U.S.-born children > > [http://kdvr.com/2017/06/22/mother-of-3-in-country-illegally-facing-deportation/](http://kdvr.com/2017/06/22/mother-of-3-in-country-illegally-facing-deportation/) > Mother of 3, in country illegally, facing deportation – AURORA, Colo. – A mother of three who is in the country illegally could be deported as soon as Friday morning. > Isle Christina Rodriguez-Sagarnaga, 30, came to the country illegally with her family when she was 5. > > [DACA student might face deportation, asked to meet with ICE](http://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/2017/04/17/daca-student-might-face-deportation-meet-authorites/100561990/) > DACA student might face deportation, asked to meet with ICE – FOREST CITY - Sthefany Flores Fuentes spent last week studying for final exams and wrapping up class projects. Until late Monday she had no idea whether she would see the payoff for her hard work. The 20-year-old honors student at Gardner-Webb University had planned to drive to Charlotte Wednesday morning for an immigration meeting that could lead to her deportation to Honduras. > > [http://wrbl.com/2017/05/12/shaw-high-school-graduate-faces-deportation/](http://wrbl.com/2017/05/12/shaw-high-school-graduate-faces-deportation/) > Shaw High School graduate faces deportation – Jose Gonzalez Ochoa currently sits in the Stewart County Detention Facility and waits to learn his fate. Ochoa and his girlfriend, Marta Lopez, were on their way to a family event on Easter. Lopez had worked a double shift, and Ochoa offered to drive since Lopez was tired. While driving in Hamilton, a Harris County Sheriff’s Deputy pulled them over for going slightly over the speed limit. > > [http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Ossining-High-School-Student-Arrested-by-ICE-Police-on-Day-of-Prom-Report-427540723.html](http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Ossining-High-School-Student-Arrested-by-ICE-Police-on-Day-of-Prom-Report-427540723.html) > Westchester High School Student Arrested by ICE Officers Days Before Graduation – Diego Ismael Puma Macancela, a 19-year-old Ecuadorean national is a senior at Ossining High School. He arrived in the U.S. with his mother in 2014. They fled their native country because of gang violence. And today news broke that Sessions was going after the gays: > [@](#): > > …angering gay rights activists by arguing in court that federal law against sex discrimination in employment doesn’t protect individuals from being fired because they are gay, lesbian or transgender. > The Justice Department made the argument in a brief filed Wednesday in a federal appeals court in New York in a case involving skydiving instructor Donald Zarda who claimed he was fired from his Long Island skydiving firm, Altitude Express, because he was gay. [http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/27/lgbt-protection-sex-discrimination-law-241039](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/07/27/lgbt-protection-sex-discrimination-law-241039) Sessions is doing what Trump’s voters elected Trump to do. If Sessions is gone, Trump’s 36% approval rating will plummet. Two days ago, Trump held a rally that filled a 6000-seat venue in Youngstown, Ohio (and boasted that it was a “record”–!). But if he fires Sessions, Trump won’t even be able to fill a meeting room at a Holiday Inn. Trump knows it. He knows that 99% of his popularity is in actuality the popularity of what Sessions is doing. He knows that if he fires Sessions—no matter how much he hates Sessions or is frustrated by Sessions or feels Sessions is disloyal—Trump knows that if he gives in to his impulses and fires Sessions, his presidency will be over. He will have no base. He will be just a guy waiting for the impeachment process to run its course. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2017, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/2 "2017-07-27T23:27:26Z")
Why is it that none of your quotes from average folks mentioned Session’s name? If 99% of Trump’s popularity was tied to Sessions, wouldn’t that show up in at least one of the anecdotes you are using to defend your claim? Frankly, I’d be surprised if even 20% of the country could name who the AG was, if asked. As for Senators, Sessions was one of their colleagues for decades. The Senate is a collegial group, so it’s not at all surprising that they would want to protect one of their own. I don’t think it’s Sessions, per se, but “a Senator from among us”. Would be just about the same for any long-serving, Republican Senator. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2017, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/3 "2017-07-27T23:38:54Z")
You misunderstood the point, John Mace. The ‘average folks’ were citing as their reason for continuing to support Trump, ‘what he’s DOING.’ And he isn’t doing it. Sessions is. That they didn’t specify ‘I like what the Department of Justice is doing with regard to deporting Dreamers, sticking it to sanctuary cities, increasing the numbers of people going to prison for drug possession’ etc. is meaningless. When they say they ‘like what he’s doing’ they do NOT mean his frequent trips to his properties or his dancing with a sword in Saudi Arabia. They mean what Sessions is doing. Your “as for Senators” point ignores the many popular/well-respected/well-compensated pundits on the right who are also speaking up for Sessions. Did they work with him? Where? ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2017, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/4 "2017-07-27T23:58:21Z")
If Trump fires Sessions his replacement will probably hold similar views. When Trump supporters describe him as having balls and so on it’s more likely a reference to his rejection of PC norms and making libs mad. Anecdotally, many Trump supporters I know stopped following the news after the election and couldn’t name any specific policies. They just know Trump is winning and anything contrary is fake news. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/5 "2017-07-28T00:26:39Z")
The replacement issue is interesting, too: to my surprise apparently the Dems may have a way of preventing Trump from making a recess appointment. Which, if true, would mean that Trump would have to get a nominee through Senate approval. And unless there’s another sub-rosa racist Senator who’s well-liked despite being a sub-rosa racist, there won’t be a replacement for Sessions who would BOTH get through a Senate vote AND be a Hammer of the Non-Whites etc. So that might mean that the stories of graduating seniors and mothers of three being deported despite having no criminal history (other than the border-crossing, sometimes when they were minors) will just stop cold. The stories of increased enforcement of laws against possession of drugs abused most often by non-white people will just stop cold. The stories of new policies making it clear that discrimination against gay people is a-okay will just stop cold. And the base won’t like that. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/6 "2017-07-28T00:36:25Z")
I think you have the number right, just applied wrong. 1% of Trump’s popularity is Sessions. The base gives solid support to Trump because he hates the people they hate. Nothing else matters. Sessions happens to have the same hates. Big deal. So do half the Republicans in Washington. The base doesn’t care what the Senate says. This is the same Senate that approved every Trump nominee. They’ll approve the hater Trump names to be A.G. when Sessions quits. This is a nothingburger. (I heard the word somewhere.) ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/7 "2017-07-28T00:47:22Z")
Trump no longer cares about anything except stopping Mueller from digging into his financial dealings. Sessions is currently in the way of the only long shot in accomplishing that. Popularity be damned, Trump is fighting for his money now. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/8 "2017-07-28T01:02:53Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > The replacement issue is interesting, too: to my surprise apparently the Dems may have a way of preventing Trump from making a recess appointment. Which, if true, would mean that Trump would have to get a nominee through Senate approval. And unless there’s another sub-rosa racist Senator who’s well-liked despite being a sub-rosa racist, there won’t be a replacement for Sessions who would BOTH get through a Senate vote AND be a Hammer of the Non-Whites etc. Cite, for any of this? What is the Dems “way of preventing Trump from making a recess appointment”? And what makes you think that the same Senate that confirmed Betsy DeVos and Rick Perry would hesitate to confirm some other anti-illegal-immigration hard-liner? And in 2018, the Republican majority in the Senate is very likely to grow. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/9 "2017-07-28T01:05:11Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Trump’s 36% approval rating … Also, do you have a cite for this? From what I see, his approval rating is [more like 40%](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html) ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/10 "2017-07-28T01:22:54Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Deporting non-violent immigrants: While there’s some cross departmental involvement from Justice in immigration enforcement you are mostly pointing out the actions of a department Session is not in charge of. ICE falls under the Department of Homeland Security. Aside from political fluff (how “awful” Obama was and how Trump is “fixing” it…or reverse the descriptions 😉 ) I have yet to see solid evidence that there’s been a significant change in deportations. Obama quietly was pretty aggressive in some ways, although [the record is more nuanced](http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/obama-record-deportations-deporter-chief-or-not) than immigration rights groups who labeled him “the deporter in chief” would have you believe. We’ve seen an uptick in anecdotal reporting of internal enforcement against non-violent individuals. If you have hard numbers showing a short term trend line that would be great. I haven’t seen anything like that. Your links are all anecdotal data. Have a cite for that piece? Till then a major plank of your argument is that Sessions popularity is the result of Secretary Kelly’s Department showing anecdotal signs of being more aggressive in some parts of it’s enforcement of federal law. That’s pretty weak. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/11 "2017-07-28T01:27:28Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I don’t think it’s Sessions, per se, but “a Senator from among us”. Would be just about the same for any long-serving, Republican Senator. Maybe not for Cruz. They might follow the “Ted Cruz is a massive dickhead” exception to normal support. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/12 "2017-07-28T01:31:51Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Also, do you have a cite for this? From what I see, his approval rating is [more like 40%](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html) That has to be the weakest defense of anybody ever in history. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/13 "2017-07-28T01:59:56Z")
That is some weak ass stuff. But you missed something: please explain why Trump is publicly denigrating the man responsible for 99% of his popularity. If you say “cuz he’s so dumb!” I think we can put a fork in this little thesis. Not because Trump is smart. It would merely mean you haven’t actually come up with a reason. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/14 "2017-07-28T02:01:22Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > You misunderstood the point, John Mace. The ‘average folks’ were citing as their reason for continuing to support Trump, ‘what he’s DOING.’ And he isn’t doing it. Sessions is. > > That they didn’t specify ‘I like what the Department of Justice is doing with regard to deporting Dreamers, sticking it to sanctuary cities, increasing the numbers of people going to prison for drug possession’ etc. is meaningless. When they say they ‘like what he’s doing’ they do NOT mean his frequent trips to his properties or his dancing with a sword in Saudi Arabia. They mean what Sessions is doing. So they like Trump because of Sessions, but they just don’t know that why they like Trump. Yeah, that makes sense. They liked Trump during the campaign (where Sessions was, at best, in the background) because he thumbed his nose at the the establishment, told them what they wanted to hear, and they like him now because he’s doing the same thing. And at least as important, they like him because he’s NOT a Democrat. > [@](#): > > Your “as for Senators” point ignores the many popular/well-respected/well-compensated pundits on the right who are also speaking up for Sessions. Did they work with him? Where? Yes, I ignored that point. But to address it, Sessions is a true, hard-core Conservative. If you are a true, hard-core Conservative pundit, then yes, you are going to like Sessions. That still does not mean you are going to like Trump. Many don’t. So yeah, if you are a DC insider, and a conservative, you like or tolerate Trump (even though you may not LIKE him) because he nominated someone like Sessions, but also someone like Gorsuch. Don’t forget Gorsuch as the source of a lot of Trump’s popularity. Probably even more so than Sessions. But that’s more than your average American is aware of. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/15 "2017-07-28T02:14:51Z")
Trump could fire Sessions and nobody would give a shit. You think liberals and moderates would weep over Sessions’ shit-canning? Maybe some Senators would but the House wouldn’t care. Sessions gave Trump some political legitimacy. Now he’s just another unpaid contractor. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/16 "2017-07-28T02:49:58Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Cite, for any of this? What is the Dems “way of preventing Trump from making a recess appointment”? > **[Senate won’t let Trump make recess appointments | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2017/07/25/politics/trump-recess-appointments/index.html)** > > Procedural move would block President Donald Trump from making any recess appointments when the Senate goes on break in mid-August Basically they prevent the Senate from going into recess by filibustering that resolution. Then they’d have to hold “pro forma” session every few days - this could just be a couple of Senators meeting for a few minutes. Republicans did it all the time to prevent Obama from making recess appointments. > [@](#): > > And what makes you think that the same Senate that confirmed Betsy DeVos and Rick Perry would hesitate to confirm some other anti-illegal-immigration hard-liner? [This tweet from Chuck Grassley.](http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/chuck-grassley-warns-judiciary-committee-wont-consider-replacement-for-jeff-sessions-this-year-if-trump-fires-him/article/2629820) ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/17 "2017-07-28T03:19:17Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Trump could fire Sessions and nobody would give a shit. You think liberals and moderates would weep over Sessions’ shit-canning? Maybe some Senators would but the House wouldn’t care. Sessions gave Trump some political legitimacy. Now he’s just another unpaid contractor. No, I am quite certain people would give a shit unless your bar is “immediately begin impeachment proceedings”. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/18 "2017-07-28T03:51:09Z")
What would prevent Trump (or any President in this situation) from: 1. Firing the Deputy AG. 2. Appointing his favorite lackey as Deputy AG. 3. Firing Sessions, thereby making his new lackey “Acting” AG. 4. Never submitting another name to the Senate for the AG position. ? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/19 "2017-07-28T04:01:07Z")
Some Guy on TV says that he can’t, that they thought of that, and put it in that only the guy who _hired_ the Special Pros can _fire_ him. If the President fires those guys, the new guy doesn’t have the power to get rid of Mueller. Then, only Congress can and only for direct malfeasance and/or misdeeds. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292/20 "2017-07-28T04:46:44Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > That has to be the weakest defense of anybody ever in history. It wasn’t intended as a defense, just a plea for accuracy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-of-trumps-popularity-is-sessions-and-trump-knows-it/792292.md?page=2)