I was in the room yesterday when Sally Yates and Ted Cruz went toe-to-toe. Senator Cruz was late to the meeting, missed Mr. Clapper’s entire opening and most of the opening by Ms. Yates, waited to asked his questions, and then promptly left after Ms. Yates won the argument. Top of his mind: Hillary Clinton’s emails and Ms. Yates’s “misbehavior” in defying Donald Trump’s unconstitutional travel ban, not the ties between Trump and Russia which was the topic of the meeting.
Though Senator Cruz was undone by this heated exchange in which he tried to discredit Ms. Yates and defend Donald Trump’s reliance on executive orders as indisputable law, Ms. Yates was not.And let’s be clear, several Senators were incredibly disrespectful to her several times.One commented, “Ms. Yates, who appointed you to the Supreme Court?” as if the AG has no right to question the legal validity of the President’s actions. She never once lost her composure.
She was prepared and passionate, while maintaining professionalism and grace. She stands with conviction and justice, even in the face of being fired from a job she loved. It was more important for her to do the right thing than to do what it would have taken to keep her job. That is patriotism.
Christa Avampato 