The House Intelligence Committee voted last Monday to release a memo written by Democratic members that rebuts a Republican memo alleging FBI abuses. The committee voted unanimously to release the memo and send it to the White House for the President’s review. The President rejected the memo yesterday.
The transcript of the meeting of the Intelligence Committee revealed that for the second time, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes declined to answer whether he or any staff members of the committee had any contact with the White House about the Republican memo prior to its release.
“Again, respectfully Mr. Chairman, whatever the answer is, it is still appropriate to answer if you or any staff member, or any other member of the committee had any communications with the White House as this memo was conceived, prepared and reviewed,” Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) asked. Chairman Nunes did not answer the question, recognizing another Congressman for five minutes instead.
It was also revealed that Ranking Member Adam Schiff made a motion to have all committee members review the underlying information for the FISA application to surveille former Trump foreign policy adviser Carter Page. That motion, Schiff revealed, was voted down. To date, only two committee members have reviewed the underlying material – Schiff, and Republican Trey Gowdy, who is also the Chair of the Government Oversight and Reform Committee.
President Trump declined to make the memo public yesterday citing FBI and Department of Justice concerns. But he directed DOJ personnel to provide technical assistance to the committee should they choose to revise the memo and encouraged committee Democrats to “undertake those efforts.”