James Comey, left, testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on July 8, 2015. Robert Mueller, right, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on June 19, 2013. (Photos: Reuters)
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said a watchdog will investigate “potential criminal conduct” in the Russia probe motivated by “impropriety or political motivation.”
“The Department has asked the Inspector General to expand the ongoing review of the (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) application process to include determining whether there was any impropriety or political motivation in how the FBI conducted its counterintelligence investigation of persons suspected of involvement with the Russian agents who interfered in the 2016 presidential election,” spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said.
D.C. is on edge as they await the vast report by Inspector General Michael Horowitz, which reviewed wrongdoing on behalf of former Obama Administration officials in the investigation into Hillary Clinton.
“As always, the Inspector General will consult with the appropriate U.S. Attorney if there is any evidence of potential criminal conduct,” Ms. Flores said.
She also released a statement from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who is overseeing Special Counsel Robert Mueller despite clear conflicts.
“If anyone did infiltrate or surveil participants in a presidential campaign for inappropriate purposes, we need to know about it and take appropriate action.”
The statement came just hours after President Trump tweeted a public demand for an investigation.
I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow, that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes – and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2018
“I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow, that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes – and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!”
