Devin Nunes Says Republicans Will Grill Mueller About His Prosecutors Sharing Information With Reporters
In a radio interview aired Saturday, California Republican Devin Nunes said that the GOP will grill special counsel Robert Mueller about one of his prosecutors sharing information with journalists, The Washington Examiner reports.
The prosecutor in question, Andrew Weissmann, has been accused of arranging a meeting with four reporters working for The Associated Press, during which he discussed matters related to Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference and possible coordination between members of the Trump campaign and official Moscow.
According to Nunes, the House Intelligence Committee was never told about these briefings, which are significant given that Weissmann knew about the so-called Steele dossier, a controversial and discredited document the Republicans have invoked to dispute the veracity of Mueller’s claims.
According to Nunes, Weissmann “was in the chain of custody of the major piece of evidence that started this investigation.”
In a statement, the AP dismissed the concerns, explaining that the agency routinely meets with sources in order to gather information.
“Associated Press journalists met with representatives from the Department of Justice in an effort to get information on stories they were reporting, as reporters do,” the publication said.
Nunes also described Mueller’s investigation as an “obstruction of justice trap,” before insulting the special counsel and members of law enforcement involved in the investigation. The California Republican suggested that unless GOP lawmakers get to the bottom of the issue, no Republican will trust the authorities involved in the case “for generations to come.”
“These are all a bunch of dirty cops and I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you — some of them better go to jail, or we’re going to go down in a spiral in this country because you will not have a Republican that will trust the FBI or the Department of Justice for generations to come.”
As The Washington Examiner notes, Mueller’s report concluded that neither President Trump nor members of his campaign conspired with Russia to sway the 2016 presidential election in the GOP’s favor. However, Mueller wrote extensively in his report about Russian election interference.
Mueller also refrained from reaching a conclusion about potential obstruction of justice by the president, so the Republicans have shifted their attention to investigating the origins of the Russia probe.
Devin Nunes: GOP will grill Mueller about top prosecutor's mystery briefing with AP reporters https://t.co/7r36kydbk5
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) July 14, 2019
In charge of investigating the matter is U.S. Attorney John Durham, and overseeing the effort is Attorney General William Barr. Another inquiry, pertaining to alleged abuse of the FISA act, has also been launched in order to investigate Christopher Steele and his Dossier.
Mueller will appear before Congress later this month.
