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US Attorney-General Jeff Sessions has recused himself from any investigations into Russian interference in last year's presidential election.
But he had been under pressure to do at least that much, and now some influential Republicans are calling for a new, independent investigation and some Democrats are saying he must resign.
So will stepping aside from current investigations be enough?
Here is some quick background on what has happened, and what key players are saying should come next.
What did Sessions do?
It was revealed Mr Sessions had spoken to Russia's ambassador to the United States twice during the election campaign, when he was a member of the Senate Armed Services committee and a Trump supporter but not yet an official member of Mr Trump's team.
During his confirmation hearing in January, he denied having any contact with Russian officials.
"I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I did not have communications with the Russians."
In response to being asked in a written question if he had "been in contact with anyone connected to any part of the Russian government about the 2016 election, either before or after election day", Mr Sessions answered "No".
So, who are the key players and what have they said?
High-ranking Republicans and Democrats in Congress have said a special prosecutor must now be appointed. Some have gone even further.
Let's take a closer look.
Jeff Sessions
Job: Attorney-General
It might seem strange to start this list with Mr Sessions himself, but as Attorney-General, he oversees the Justice Department and the FBI — the two agencies which have been carrying out the investigation of Russian influences on the 2016 election.
In a press conference on Thursday (Washington time) Mr Sessions announced he would stand aside from overseeing these investigations.
"I have now decided to recuse myself from any existing or future investigations of any matter relating in any way to the campaigns for President of the United States," he said.
"This announcement should not be interpreted as confirmation of the existence of any investigation or suggestive of the scope of any such investigation."
Richard Burr and Devin Nunes
Jobs: Senate Intelligence Chairman and House Intelligence Chairman
These are the Republicans who are overseeing the congressional investigations into Russian influence on the presidential election.
Last month, the Washington Post reported that they'd both, at the behest of the White House, contacted news organisations and disputed articles which made allegations about the Trump campaign's contacts with Russian officials.
"I felt I had something to share that didn't breach my responsibilities to the committee in an ongoing investigation," Mr Burr told the newspaper.
Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer
Jobs: House Minority Leader and Senate Minority Leader
Ms Pelosi is the most senior Democrat in the House of Representatives and is piling pressure on the Trump administration, saying Mr Sessions must resign because he "lied under oath" during his confirmation hearing.
"Attorney-General Sessions has never had the credibility to oversee the FBI investigation of senior Trump officials' ties to the Russians," she said.
"That is why Democrats have consistently called for Sessions to recuse himself from any oversight of the investigation."
Representative Elijah Cummings, the most senior Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, has also called for Mr Sessions' resignation, as has senator Elizabeth Warren.
Meanwhile, Mr Schumer called the resignation of Michael Flynn as national security adviser in similar circumstances the "beginning of a much longer story".
He wants the Trump administration to preserve all records from its transition period, saying: "There is real concern that some in the administration may try to cover up its ties to Russia by deleting emails, texts and other records."
Darrell Issa and Lindsey Graham
Jobs: House and Senate Republicans
Last week, Mr Issa broke ranks with other Republicans by arguing that Mr Sessions should recuse himself — which he now has done — and appoint a special prosecutor to investigate ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
"You cannot have somebody, a friend of mine, Jeff Sessions, who was on the campaign and who was an appointee," he told HBO's Bill Maher.
"You're going to need to use the special prosecutor's statute and office."
Meanwhile, Senator Graham has argued that if the FBI determines the Trump campaign illegally coordinated with Russia, Mr Sessions should remove himself from any decisions on whether prosecutions should be pursued.
"When it comes to Russia, he [Mr Trump] has a blind spot. The bottom line is that Putin is disrupting democracy everywhere," Senator Graham told CNN.
John McCain
Job: Senate Republican
The former presidential candidate has been one of the most outspoken Republicans on the issue of Russia.
"What the Russians tried to do to our election could have destroyed democracy," he told CNN.
He's called for a select committee to investigate the issue.
Last year, Mr McCain supported the nomination of Mr Sessions for Attorney-General, saying: "I believe Jeff has the right knowledge and experience to effectively lead the Justice Department."
James Comey
Job: Director of the FBI
You'll probably remember it was Mr Comey who oversaw the FBI's investigation of Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server as secretary of state.
Now, the FBI is investigating alleged contacts between the Russian Government and people associated with Mr Trump, as well as the hacking of the Democratic National Committee during the election campaign.
Donald Trump
Job: President
We've left the most obvious name till last. As was the case when national security adviser Michael Flynn was similarly under fire, the President has a bigger say than anyone on what happens now.
Mr Trump has said he has "total" confidence in Mr Sessions, adding he "wasn't aware" the Attorney-General had any contact with the Russian ambassador during his presidential campaign.
Topics: world-politics, donald-trump, united-states
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