Three Democratic Senators Challenge Legality of Whitaker Appointment

Acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker, gives brief remarks to state and local law enforcement on efforts to combat violent crime and the opioid crisis at the U.S. Courthouse Annex, in Des Moines, Iowa, on Nov. 14, 2018. Steve Pope/Getty Images

A trio of Democratic senators filed a lawsuit on Nov. 19 challenging the legality of President Donald Trump’s designation of Matthew Whitaker as the acting U.S. attorney general.

Attorneys for Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) claim in a lawsuit that Trump violated the Constitution’s appointments clause when he chose Whitaker to temporarily serve as the replacement for Jeff Sessions, who resigned at Trump’s request on Nov. 7.