President Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign hit out against former Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday, calling him “delusional” and demanded that he stop promoting his ties to the incumbent president in his bid for the Alabama senatorial position.
Trump campaign chief operation officer Michael Glassner issued a letter to the Sessions team, initially seen by Fox News and the New York Times, calling out Sessions' attempts to demonstrate his closeness to the president.
“The Trump Campaign has learned that your U.S. Senate campaign is circulating mailers like the one I have enclosed, in which you misleadingly promote your connections to and ‘support’ of President Trump”, Glassner wrote in the letter.
Glassner made reference to a form sent out to Sessions’ donors which mentions President Trump “22 times".
“The letter even makes the delusional assertion that you are President Trump’s “#1 Supporter”, Glassner wrote.
“We only assume your campaign is doing this to confuse President Trump’s loyal supporters in Alabama into believing the President supports your candidacy in the upcoming primary runoff election."
“Nothing could be further from the truth", he added.
Glassner quoted Trump's endorsement of Tommy Tuberville, Sessions' Republican primary rival and the former head football coach at Auburn, in which he described him as a “winner” who had his "complete and total endorsement".
Sessions responded to Trump's endorsement of Tuberville in a tweet, saying it "empowers" the people of Alabama.
Even before he declared for the presidency, I fought for the principles that Donald Trump so effectively advocated in the campaign and has advanced as President. I believed in those principles then, I have always fought for them, and I will continue to do so. (2/2.)
— Jeff Sessions (@jeffsessions) March 11, 2020
Both Tuberville and Sessions will both be running on the GOP ticket after no candidate successfully received a 50 percent vote share in the party's primary. The runoff was initially scheduled for Tuesday but was postponed until 14 July due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Sessions held the seat from 1995 to 2017 before he was appointed as Trump's Attorney General. The Alabama seat is currently held by Democrat Doug Jones.
Prior to his fallout with the president, Sessions was among Trump's most fervent supporters and was the first senator to endorse Trump's 2016 presidential run. However, he was subsequently removed in November 2018 over Sessions' recusal from the Russiagate investigation.
