A top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee said that a special independent panel isn’t needed to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election because the FBI is already doing a probe.
Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., said on Face the Nation on Sunday that the FBI probe negates the need for the independent panel, which Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Adam Schiff, D-Calif., had called for earlier in the program.
Gowdy said that the FBI is the world’s “premier law enforcement agency.”
“It doesn’t get any more independent than that,” he said.
FBI Director James Comey briefed the panel earlier this week that the agency is conducting an investigation into the Russian interference.
Gowdy also defended Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., decision to brief President Trump on incidental monitoring of members of his campaign.
Gowdy noted that the material he briefed Trump on wasn’t related to the probe on Russian interference.
“If the commander in chief cannot be briefed by the chairperson of the House intel committee on a matter that has nothing to do with the FBI investigation then I don’t know what they can talk about,” he said.
