Speaking of the Keebler elf's dismissal

On Wednesday, the attorney general received the call everyone in Washington knew was coming some day soon.

John Kelly, the White House chief of staff, asked Sessions to submit his resignation, according to multiple sources briefed on the call. Sessions agreed to comply, but he wanted a few more days before the resignation would become effective. Kelly said he'd consult the President.

Soon, the sources say, top Justice officials convened on the 5th floor suite of offices for the attorney general. Eventually, there were two huddles in separate offices. Among those in Sessions' office was Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, his deputy Ed O'Callaghan, Solicitor General Noel Francisco and Steven Engel, who heads the Office of Legal Counsel.

A few yards away, Whitaker strategized with other aides, including Gary Barnett, now his chief of staff.

[...]

A source close to Sessions says that the former attorney general realized that Whitaker was "self-dealing" after reports surfaced in September that Whitaker had spoken with Kelly and had discussed plans to become the No. 2 at the Justice Department if Rosenstein was forced to resign.

In recent months, with his relationship with the President at a new low, Sessions skipped several so-called principals meetings that he was slated to attend as a key member of the Cabinet. A source close to Sessions says that neither the attorney general nor Trump thought it was a good idea for Sessions to be at the White House, so he sent surrogates. Whitaker was one of them.

But Sessions did not realize Whitaker was having conversations with the White House about his future until the news broke in late September about Rosenstein.

  CNN

Apparently Ole Jeff didn't have a posse.

The fact that Whitaker would become acting attorney general, passing over Rosenstein suddenly raised concerns about the impact on the most high-profile investigation in the Justice Department, the Russia probe led by Mueller.

[...]

Rosenstein and O'Callaghan, the highest-ranked officials handling day-to-day oversight of Mueller's investigation, urged Sessions to delay the effective date of his resignation.

Soon, Whitaker strode into Sessions' office and asked to speak one-on-one to the attorney general; the others left the two men alone. It was a brief conversation. Shortly after, Sessions told his huddle that his resignation would be effective that day.

[...]

Sessions never heard in person from the President -- the man who gained television fame for his catch-phrase "You're fired" doesn't actually like such confrontation and prefers to have others do the firing, people close to the President say. Kelly called Sessions a second time to tell him the President had rejected his request for a delay.

[...]

Whitaker and Sessions didn't have a prior relationship before Sessions -- at the urging of the White House -- accepted Whitaker as his chief of staff.

And anybody with a brain would have guessed right then that something was afoot. If Sessions was surprised that Whitaker was meeting with the president behind his back, it's because Sessions is slow on the uptake.

Sessions was the first US senator to endorse Trump at a time when establishment Republicans were still staying away, and he left his safe Alabama Senate seat to take the attorney general job.

Several members of his staff also joined the President's team, helping to craft some of the harsh immigration policies that Sessions often preached from Capitol Hill and which have become a cornerstone of stump speeches that Trump regularly uses to excite his political base.

[...]

More recently, Sessions appeared at peace with the prospect of being ousted from office. He made a series of valedictory visits with law enforcement around the country, seeking to underline what he believes will be his legacy of strong support for law enforcement and efforts to reduce crime.

Sessions spent Election Day on Tuesday surrounded by what he loves: cops and sweets.

Child.

[W]hen he arrived in the cafeteria for lunch, a room full of FBI personnel and local police officers training in the National Academy rose to their feet as he entered the room. He went around from table to table, shaking hands, posing for pictures -- soaking up the moment and capping it off with vanilla ice cream with sprinkles.

Roughly 24 hours later, he was out of a job.

With sprinkles.