{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-c03aa079.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-517835be.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Sessions Talks Pardons and Pot at Senate Meeting' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54d78fd8eafeecae20cee7' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54d78fd8eafeecae20cee7' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nSessions Talks Pardons and Pot at Senate Meeting\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eAttorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday defended President Donald Trump's right to pardon former Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former Bush administration official I. Lewis \"Scooter\" Libby.              Both of those pardons were issued by...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eAttorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday defended President Donald Trump's right to pardon former Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former Bush administration official I. Lewis \"Scooter\" Libby.\u003cbr/\u003e              Both of those pardons were issued by Trump and bypassed the involvement of the Justice Department and its pardon attorney, which historically reviews petitions for clemency.\u003cbr/\u003e              Sessions made the comments at a Senate subcommittee hearing where Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, reminded him that as a Republican senator from Alabama, Sessions had once defended the role and value of the Justice Department's pardon attorney.\u003cbr/\u003e              \"It's clearly within the power of the president to execute pardons without the pardon attorney,\" Sessions said.\u003cbr/\u003e              He acknowledged under questioning that he could not recall any pardon during President Barack Obama's administration that did not go through the Justice Department, but he complained about pardons from President Bill Clinton that he considered objectionable.\u003cbr/\u003e              \"I would just say that pardons that President Clinton were made were stunning, shocking and unacceptable on the merits,\" he said in a raised voice. That was likely a reference to the 2001 pardon of fugitive businessman Marc Rich, an act that later came under federal investigation.\u003cbr/\u003e              He defended Arpaio as a legitimate pardon candidate because of the former Arizona sheriff's advanced age of 85 and misdemeanor contempt-of-court conviction. He also said Libby had \"contributed greatly to America.\" Libby, a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted in 2007 of lying to investigators and obstruction of justice following the 2003 leak of the covert identity of CIA officer Valerie Plame, though no one was ever charged for the leak.\u003cbr/\u003e            \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003e              POOL \u003cbr/\u003e              Washington - 25 April 20118\u003cbr/\u003e              1. Wide of Jeff Sessions arriving\u003cbr/\u003e              2 . SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \"It is the policy of the Department of Justice that those who've recused themselves not state the details of it - or confirm the existence of a investigation or the scope or nature of that investigation.\"\u003cbr/\u003e              3. Wide of floor\u003cbr/\u003e              4. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \"(Sen. Patrick Leahy, (D) Vermont) But if the president were to improperly fire either the Deputy Attorney General who supervises the Russian investigation or the special counsel, would you resign in opposition?\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sessions) Senator Leahy that calls for a speculative answer- or question calls for speculation. I just am not able to do that.\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sen. Leahy) You're surprised by that question. You don't have to answer that -you're smile answers the question.\"\u003cbr/\u003e              5. Wide of floor\u003cbr/\u003e              6. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \"I think there can be- it may well be some benefits from medical marijuana and it's perfectly appropriate to study that. I do not believe at this point that I think one study that suggested there's no - that some sort of inverse relationship between increased marijuana use and reducing of deaths - I did see that - I've asked my staff to take a look at it because science is very important and I don't believe that will be sustained in the long run. The American Medical Association is absolutely, resolutely opposed to marijuana use. I think so is the Pediatric Association--- it's a matter of science. And I think we should be free to discuss it.\"\u003cbr/\u003e              7. Wide of floor\u003cbr/\u003e              8. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \"I don't know that I use that phrase abuse of power because clearly not- it's clearly within the power of the President to execute pardons without the pardon attorney. If you are doing a lot of pardons and you want to have a lot of cases and you want to have them reviewed by independent force, the pardon attorney provides a real asset to a chief executive before executing a pardon.\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sen. Chris Van Hollen, (D) Maryland) Did the pardon of Sheriff Joseph Arpaio go through the pardon attorney office.\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sessions) I don't believe it did.\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sen. Van Hollen) Did the pardon of Scooter Libby go through that office?\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sessions) I don't believe it did.\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sen. Van Hollen) But do you agree with what you said earlier that that is the appropriate course of action for a pardon. I'm not asking you what the President's authority is.\u003cbr/\u003e              9. Wide of floor\u003cbr/\u003e              10. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \" I would say that pardons that President Clinton made were stunning, shocking, and unacceptable on the merits and to Arpaio was 80- some years of age and he was convicted of a misdemeanor. and Mr. Libby ...\u003cbr/\u003e              (Sen. Van Hollen) In both cases you know they did not go through \u003cbr/\u003e              11. Wide of floor\u003cbr/\u003e              12. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Session, U.S. Attorney General:\u003cbr/\u003e              \"Look I'll be frank, our priorities are fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine. People are dying by massive amounts as a result of those drugs. We've had very few - almost zero, virtually zero- small marijuana cases but there are big dealer and illegally acting and violating federal law our federal agents may work that case.\"\u003cbr/\u003e              13. 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