New Acting Attorney General In Iowa Today

Recently appointed acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker will be visiting the state of Iowa today. The University of Iowa alum will appear at the Rural and Tribal Elder Justice Summit in Des Moines this morning. Whitaker is scheduled to speak at around 9:15 a.m.

Whitaker was thrust into the national spotlight last week as he was named acting attorney general. His appointment came after President Trump forced the resignation of then attorney general Jeff Sessions. In his new role, Whitaker will oversee special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation instead of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Critics of Whitaker's appointment point to his apparent disapproval of the special counsel's investigation. He wrote an opinion piece last year entitled "Mueller's Investigation of Trump is going too far." Some have called for him to recuse himself, as Sessions did, from overseeing the probe.

Others are questioning the legality of his appointment. Whitaker did not require any Senate confirmation for his job, as Sessions did.

[via Daily Iowan]