Michael Flynn FBI Investigation Influenced By Trump? Comey Memos Sought By Jason Chaffetz

Reports of former FBI Director James Comey recording the conversations between him and President Donald Trump regarding the Bureau’s investigation of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn surfaced Tuesday. Following the reports, House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chafettz demanded that Andrew G. McCabe, acting FBI director, hand over all the memos that might suggest the president or any other government official interfered in FBI’s probe into Flynn possibly colluding with Russia.

A letter seeking Comey’s memos was sent to the FBI headquarters by the Oversight Committee following the report that Trump told Comey “I hope you can let this go,” after intelligence regarding Flynn’s collusion with the Russians surfaced, as reported by the New York Times. Comey, on the other hand, did not immediately agree or disagree with the president’s request, choosing to only comment on Flynn’s character, saying: “I agree he is a good guy.”

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The Times report also said Comey documented every conversation he had with Trump in detailed memos, including the president’s request to drop the investigation on Flynn. The “memoranda, notes, summaries, and recordings” the House demanded to see first-hand will answer “questions as to whether the president attempted to influence or impede” the FBI, Chafettz said in the letter.

As to whether the committee has the right to make such demand, Chafettz added a footnote which said it was the “principle oversight committee of the House of Representatives, and may at ‘any time’ investigate ‘any matter’ as set forth in House Rule X.”

Regarding the unique powers of the oversight committee, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said in November that no government employee was exempt from being investigated by the committee, including the president, the Hill reported.

Read: 6 Times When President Donald Trump Praised Ex-FBI Director James Comey

“Oversight is oversight. And I want Oversight to hold me accountable, too,” he added. “It’s not based upon [whether it’s] Donald; it’s based upon what is the role of your jobs, carry out your jobs and put blinders on.”

Based on the ethical responsibilities of the committee, the Democrats wanted Chafettz to push the president to release his tax returns, something that hasn’t seen the light of the day till now.

However, there has been a long history of FBI agents’ rough drafts being presented as serious evidence in court cases in the past, according to the Times report.

If Chafettz manages to get his hands on the Comey memos and the committee discovers incriminating evidence proving that Trump did, in fact, try to influence FBI’s probe into Flynn’s connection to Russia, the president may face charges of obstruction of justice.

The White House issued a statement denying the contents of the memos, saying Trump never tried to get Comey to drop the investigation, the Times reported.

“The president has the utmost respect for our law enforcement agencies, and all investigations. This is not a truthful or accurate portrayal of the conversation between the president and Mr. Comey,” the statement said.