A group of Trump-allied House Republicans on Tuesday introduced a resolution calling for the appointment of a second special counsel to examine possible “misconduct at the highest level” of the Justice Department and FBI as it decided to investigate Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
The resolution was put forward after the Justice Department asked its inspector general expand an ongoing review to investigate whether a confidential informant was sent to speak with Trump aides amid its investigation into Russian meddling in the election.
The resolution, led by Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., details how the second special counsel would investigate the confidential informant, how the Justice Department and FBI handled surveillance warrants during its Trump investigation, and its probe into Hillary Clinton’s private email server.
The IG is already looking into other allegations of misconduct in the Justice Department and the FBI, and House Speaker Paul Ryan said earlier Tuesday he supports the Justice Department’s decision to expand its review to include the confidential informant.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has also assigned U.S. Attorney John Huber from Utah to investigate allegations of misconduct, a decision he made earlier this year when declining lawmakers calls for a second special counsel. But the IG investigations and Huber are not enough, said lawmakers Tuesday.
“The Justice Department cannot be expected to investigate itself,” declared Zeldin.
[Related: Second special counsel needed because DOJ can’t ‘investigate themselves’]
Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C. said the consignees of the resolution will demand Ryan bring it to the House floor.
“It is also the position of many in this group that [Sessions] should re-look at his decision to not appoint a special counsel,” Meadows said.
Meadows said that House leadership is “fully aware” of the resolution and their calls for a second special counsel.
“There have been a number of conversations with House leadership. It’s been outlined already that we have members of leadership and chairmen of committee that have done so,” he told reporters.
The resolution comes a day after an unusual meeting at the White House between Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees special counsel Robert Mueller, and FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Following the meeting, an agreement was announced that “White House Chief of Staff Kelly will immediately set up a meeting with the FBI, DOJ, and DNI together with Congressional Leaders to review highly classified and other information they have requested.”
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and other GOP lawmakers, including Meadows, have sought unsuccessfully to see certain documents related to the FBI’s investigation into Russian meddling from before Mueller was appointed.
Meadows said none of the lawmakers party to the resolution have been pressured by Trump personally to call for the second special counsel. Democrats have criticized the calls for a second special counsel as an attempt to undermine Mueller’s investigation.
