Inside the frayed relationship between Donald Trump and Jeff Sessions
— -- President Donald Trump counted his attorney general, Jeff Sessions, among his earliest supporters and the first sitting senator to endorse him.
On Wednesday, Sessions resigned as attorney general effective immediately at the request of the president.
The relationship between Sessions and Trump began to fray last year in the wake of Sessions recusing himself from the Russia investigation – a cloud that has hung over the Trump administration almost since its inception.
Trump even rebuked Sessions publicly, indicating that he would have nominated someone else for attorney general had he known about the recusal and called him a “beleaguered A.G.” on Twitter.
Sessions offered to resign at one point -- which Trump rejected -- but later said in the summer of 2017 that he planned to remain attorney general "as long as that is appropriate."
Here is a timeline of the ongoing relationship between Trump and Sessions:
Feb. 28, 2016 -- Sessions endorses Trump
Sessions formally endorsed Trump's candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination days ahead of Super Tuesday, becoming the first sitting senator to do so. Trump's outsider bid continued to build momentum in the weeks leading up to the endorsement as the real estate mogul captured primary and caucus victories in three of the first four contests.
“I told Donald Trump, this isn’t a campaign, this is a movement,” Sessions said in a speech in Alabama announcing the endorsement.
Mar. 3, 2016 -- Sessions named chair of Trump's national security advisory council
Trump appointed Sessions to an official position on his campaign team, naming the Alabama senator the head of his national security advisory council.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to recommend and facilitate discussions among exceptional and experienced American military and diplomatic leaders to share insight and advice with Donald Trump, regardless of their political views," Sessions said in a release announcing the appointment.
