WASHINGTON—House Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes responded Sunday to President Donald Trump’s claim that the previous administration conducted surveillance on Trump Towers.
President Trump issued a request to Congress Sunday morning to include in its Russia intelligence investigation whether the Obama administration took actions upon his campaign team.
“One of the focus points of the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation is the U.S. government’s response to actions taken by Russian intelligence agents during the presidential campaign,” Nunes said in a statement to CNN. “As such, the committee will make inquiries into whether the government was conducting surveillance activities on any political party’s campaign officials or surrogates, and we will continue to investigate this issue if the evidence warrants it.”
The New York Times previously reported that the Obama administration left a trail of information for government investigators to follow about Russian attempts to influence the 2016 presidential election as well as possible contacts between associates of then President-elect Trump and Russians.
Senate Select Intelligence Committee member Oklahoma Republican Jim Lankford found that news disturbing.
“It is very disconcerting in the way you handle leaks or evidence or what previous administration was doing to try to hurt the next administration. We’re obviously chasing the facts right now,” Lankford told The Daily Caller last Thursday.
Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my “wires tapped” in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
Trump tweeted Saturday morning and accused former President Obama of wiretapping Trump Tower before the election. Trump later said in another tweet, “How low has President Obama gone to tapp [sic] my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!”
Trump also asked early Sunday morning, “Is it true the DNC would not allow the FBI access to check server or other equipment after learning it was hacked? Can that be possible?”
California Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking member on the House Select Intelligence Committee, previously told TheDC almost one week ago the committee would be interested in knowing if the DNC rebuffed FBI efforts to gain access to their servers. Just days later before the committee could finish its probe, Schiff called for the resignation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions for Sessions’ response relating to the former Alabama Senator’s past contacts to the Russian ambassador.
