In this July 13, 2018 photo, Attorney General Jeff Sessions delivers remarks in Portland, Maine. President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, suggesting the embattled... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this July 13, 2018 photo, Attorney General Jeff Sessions delivers remarks in Portland, Maine. President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, suggesting the embattled official should have intervened in investigations of two GOP congressmen to help Republicans in... (Associated Press) 
 
 WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump escalated his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday, suggesting the Department of Justice put Republicans in midterm jeopardy with recent indictments of two GOP congressmen. 
 
 In his latest broadside against the Justice Department's traditional independence, Trump tweeted that "Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department." 
 
 He added: "Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff......" 
 
 The president's striking suggestion that the Justice Department consider politics when making decisions showed his disregard for the agency's independence. Trump has frequently suggested he views Justice less as a law enforcement agency and more as a department that is supposed to do his personal and political bidding. Still, investigators are never supposed to take into account the political affiliations of the people they investigate. 
 
 Trump, who did not address the specifics of the charges, did not name the Republicans. But he was apparently referring to the first two Republicans to endorse him in the GOP presidential primaries. Both were indicted on separate charges last month: Rep. Duncan Hunter of California on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses and Rep. Chris Collins of New York on insider trading. Both have proclaimed their innocence. 
 
 The Hunter investigation began in June 2016, according to the indictment. The indictment into Collins lays out behavior from 2017. He was also under investigation by congressional ethics officials. 
 
 Hunter has not exited his race, while Collins ended his re-election bid days after his indictment. Both seats appear likely to remain in GOP hands, but the charges have raised Democratic hopes. 
 
 A spokeswoman for Sessions declined comment, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 
 
 Trump did not have any public events Monday. He briefly exited the White House to a waiting motorcade, but then went back inside without going anywhere. 
 
 He has previously pressed Sessions to investigate his perceived enemies and has accused Sessions of failing to take control of the Justice Department. Trump has also repeatedly complained publicly and privately over Sessions' decision to recuse himself from the federal investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia because he'd worked on Trump's campaign. 
 
 Some of the issues Trump has raised have either already been examined or are being investigated. 
 
 The tension between Trump and Sessions boiled over recently with Sessions punching back, saying that he and his department "will not be improperly influenced by political considerations." Still, Sessions has made clear to associates that he has no intention of leaving his job voluntarily despite Trump's constant criticism. 
 
 Allies, including Republican members of Congress, have long advised Trump that firing Sessions — especially before the November midterm elections — would be deeply damaging to the party. But some have indicated that Trump may make a change after the elections. 
 
 "I think there will come a time, sooner rather than later, where it will be time to have a new face and a fresh voice at the Department of Justice," Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told reporters recently. 
 
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 Eric Tucker contributed from Washington and Mike Balsamo contributed from New York City. ||||| Attorney General Jeff Sessions Jefferson (Jeff) Beauregard SessionsSenators call for DOJ to stop blocking medical marijuana research Hatch: Those advising Trump to fire Mueller going against 'nation's best interest' Gingrich compares FBI raid of Trump lawyer to Nazi secret police MORE said early Thursday that he would be willing to recuse himself from any investigation of Russian involvement in President Trump's campaign if it's "appropriate." 
 
 "I have said whenever it's appropriate, I will recuse myself," he told NBC News. "There's no doubt about that." 
 
 In @NBCNews exclusive video AG Sessions says he will recuse himself from Russia investigation whenever appropriate: pic.twitter.com/wKajg9MUJj — Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) March 2, 2017 
 
 Reports emerged late Wednesday that Sessions spoke twice with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 presidential race. Sessions did not disclose those conversations during his confirmation hearings for attorney general, testifying under oath that he “did not have communications with the Russians.” 
 
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 Sessions defended himself during his comments with NBC News, saying he didn't discuss the presidential campaign with Russian officials. 
 
 “Well, I have not met with any Russians at any time to discuss any political campaigns,” he said. "Those remarks are unbelievable to me and are false. I don’t have anything else to say about that.” 
 
 Sessions's latest comments come as more GOP lawmakers say he might have to recuse himself from any investigation involving Russia and the Trump campaign at the Justice Department. 
 
 On Thursday morning, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) suggested it would be "easier" if Sessions recused himself from any Russia-related investigations that might come up. 
 
 "I don't have all the information in front of me, I don't want to pre-judge, but I just think for any investigation going forward, you want to make sure everybody trusts the investigation," McCarthy said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe." 
 
 "That there's no doubt within the investigation. ... I think it would be easier from that standpoint, yes." 
 
 The FBI is said to be investigating contact between Russian officials and members of the Trump campaign, though there has yet to be any formal charges brought. Committees in the House and Senate are pursuing their own investigations. 
 
 Sen. Lindsey Graham Lindsey Olin GrahamSchumer: Mueller protection bill would pass by 'very large majority' Hatch: Those advising Trump to fire Mueller going against 'nation's best interest' Graham uses Fox News appearance to ask Trump not to fire Mueller MORE (R-S.C.) on Wednesday said that if the FBI finds any criminal activity related to campaign aides' alleged contact with Russian officials, then a special prosecutor will likely be needed. 
 
 Rep. Sean Duffy Sean Patrick DuffyMarch for Our Lives to leave empty seats for lawmakers at town halls GOP lawmaker: 'Of course' Dems will impeach Trump if they take control of House Longtime manager of Bon Iver to run for Congress in Wisconsin: report MORE (R-Wis.), meantime, said he wished Sessions had been "more clear" during the confirmation process about his meetings. 
 
 "It gives me some pause that he wasn't more clear about the meeting," Duffy said Thursday morning on CNN's "New Day." 
 
 "I think as he's going through the campaign with Mr. Trump though, he was acting in his official capacity as a senator, you want to disclose that information and I think it should have been more clear during his confirmation process that he did have the meetings." 
 
 Sessions, a former Republican senator from Alabama, reportedly spoke with Kislyak during a July Heritage Foundation event at the Republican National Convention attended by about 50 ambassadors. 
 
 A Department of Justice official told The Washington Post Kislyak was among a group of diplomats who approached Sessions and spoke with him informally there. 
 
 Sessions also spoke with Kislyak via phone in September, according to a spokeswoman for the attorney general. 
 
 The conversation took place during a time when U.S. intelligence officials assert that Russia was interfering in the 2016 race through a hacking and influence campaign. 
 
 Reports emerged last month that top aides and allies of Trump’s White House run were in recurring contact with senior Russian intelligence officials. 
 
 Democrats seized on news about Sessions speaking with Kislyak, arguing Sessions must recuse himself from any federal investigation into contact between Russia and Trump’s team. 
 
 Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Ann WarrenWarren: Mulvaney is 'hurting real people to score cheap political points' Overnight Finance: Mulvaney asks Congress to retake power over consumer agency | Backs House in fight over Dodd-Frank rollback | Why Corker thinks tax cuts could be one of his 'worst votes' ever | House panel advances IRS reform bills Mulvaney urges Congress to strip agency's powers MORE (D-Mass.) called for Sessions to resign following the news. 
 
 "This is not normal. This is not fake news," Warren tweeted. "This is a very real & serious threat to the national security of the United States." 
 
 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also called for Sessions's resignation, saying Sessions is "not fit to serve as the top law enforcement officer of our country." 
 
 Trump has repeatedly dismissed the reports of Russia contacts as "fake news" and suggested the real issue is leaks of information from the intelligence community. 
 
 Yet scrutiny of the issue continues to build, particularly after Michael Flynn resigned last month as national security adviser for misleading Vice President Pence about his own phone conversations with Kislyak after the election. 
 
 This report was updated at 9:54 a.m.
– President Trump escalated his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday, suggesting the Department of Justice put Republicans in midterm jeopardy with recent indictments of two GOP congressmen. Per the AP, Trump tweeted that "Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department." He added: "Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff......" The president's striking suggestion that the Justice Department consider politics when making decisions showed his disregard for the agency's independence. Investigators are never supposed to take into account the political affiliations of the people they investigate. Trump, who did not address the specifics of the charges, did not name the Republicans. But he was apparently referring to the first two Republicans to endorse him in the GOP presidential primaries. Both were indicted on separate charges last month: Rep. Duncan Hunter of California on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses and Rep. Chris Collins of New York on insider trading. Both have proclaimed their innocence. A spokeswoman for Sessions declined comment, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump did not have any public events Monday. He briefly exited the White House to a waiting motorcade, but then went back inside without going anywhere.