Silke Jasso
Acting on yesterday’s unverified claims made by President Donald Trump on Twitter, the White House has ordered an investigation into whether the Obama Administration ordered Trump Tower to be wiretapped in its finals days.
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In a tweeted statement, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer called “reports” of “potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election” a “very troubling” phenomena. Spicer also said the White House would have no further comment on the explosive claims. He offered no evidence to support the accusations.
(1/4) Reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling.
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) March 5, 2017
(2/4) President Trump is requesting that as part of their investigation into Russian activity, the congressional intelligence committees
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) March 5, 2017
(3/4) exercise their oversight authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) March 5, 2017
(4/4) Neither the White House nor the President will comment further until such oversight is conducted.
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) March 5, 2017
Trump’s accusations come in the midst of accumulating scrutiny into his campaign and administration’s ties to Russia before, during and after the election.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/837989835818287106
Reuters confirms that a wiretap warrant could have only been issued by a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) court, a separate court system that handles requests for surveillance of foreign agents and terror suspects by federal law enforcement and US intelligence agencies inside the United States.
Kevin Lewis, a former Obama spokesperson, flatly rebuked Trump’s claims, saying:
“A cardinal rule of the Obama administration was that no White House official ever interfered with any independent investigation led by the Department of Justice. As part of that practice, neither President Obama nor any White House official ever ordered surveillance on any U.S. citizen. Any suggestion otherwise is simply false.”
