Despite insistence from the FBI that President Trump not release the controversial memo (reportedly regarding FISA abuse by Justice Department officials) pushed by House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes, the president will release the memo. However, Republicans haven’t gotten their stories straight regarding the impact the memo might have.
While President Trump has reportedly been bragging to friends that the memo will discredit the FBI and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is saying the opposite while asserting that it’s Congress’ duty to release it. Ryan spoke to reporters during a break at the congressional Republican retreat in West Virginia and said that since Congress passed the laws regarding FISA, it’s part of Congress’ “legitimate oversight” to ensure that the law isn’t being abused:
“What this memo is is Congress doing its job in conducting legitimate oversight over a very unique law, FISA. If mistakes were made and individuals did something wrong, it’s our job as the legislative branch to conduct oversight over the executive branch if abuses were made … If Americans civil liberties were abused that needs to come to light so that it does’t happen again. What this is not is an indictment of our justice systems, of the FBI, the Department of Justice, it does not impugn the Mueller investigation or the deputy attorney general.”
Ryan, who did not comment on the response memo written by Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee (who have accused Nunes of bias), said that his call was being made in the spirit of “transparency” as long as “we’re not revealing sources and methods to protect our national security.”
(Via CBS News)