Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island), the chair and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, today sent a letter to the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Acting Deputy Attorney General requesting information on possible wiretapping of President Trump, the Trump campaign, or Trump Tower.
“We request that the Department of Justice provide us copies of any warrant applications and court orders—redacted as necessary to protect intelligence sources and methods that may be compromised by disclosure, and to protect any ongoing investigations—related to wiretaps of President Trump, the Trump Campaign, or Trump Tower,” wrote Graham and Whitehouse. “We will be glad to review any such applications and orders once they are disclosed, and proceed as appropriate with the oversight the President has requested.”
“As Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, we would take any abuse of wiretapping authorities for political purposes very seriously. We would be equally alarmed to learn that a court found enough evidence of criminal activity or contact with a foreign power to legally authorize a wiretap of President Trump, the Trump Campaign, or Trump Tower.
FULL TEXT OF LETTER BELOW:
March 8, 2017
The Honorable Dana J. Boente
Acting Deputy Attorney General
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20530
The Honorable James B. Comey, Jr.
Director
Federal Bureau of Investigation
935 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20535
Dear Deputy Attorney General Boente and Director Comey:
Congress must get to the bottom of President Trump’s recent allegation that President Obama wiretapped President Trump’s phones during the 2016 election. The White House agrees. On Sunday, President Trump requested, through Press Secretary Sean Spicer, that Congressional committees investigate whether executive branch investigative powers were abused during the Obama administration.
The President’s request was for the intelligence committees to look into this, but it is the Department of Justice’s criminal division that obtains warrants for wiretaps, and oversight of the criminal division lies with the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism. Therefore, we request that the Department of Justice provide us copies of any warrant applications and court orders—redacted as necessary to protect intelligence sources and methods that may be compromised by disclosure, and to protect any ongoing investigations—related to wiretaps of President Trump, the Trump Campaign, or Trump Tower. We will be glad to review any such applications and orders once they are disclosed, and proceed as appropriate with the oversight the President has requested.
As Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, we would take any abuse of wiretapping authorities for political purposes very seriously. We would be equally alarmed to learn that a court found enough evidence of criminal activity or contact with a foreign power to legally authorize a wiretap of President Trump, the Trump Campaign, or Trump Tower. We look forward to your response.
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A PDF of the letter is attached.
