Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., is demanding FBI Director Christopher Wray provide him with answers as to whether FBI investigator Peter Strzok and FBI lawyer Lisa Page have access to sensitive information, as well as the status of their security clearances.
Paul sent a letter to Wray on Tuesday, but it was made public Thursday. The Kentucky senator accused Strzok and Page of having a “political vendetta” against President Trump and said he is worried about their access to sensitive information.
“James Madison warned that men are not angels. The exposure of political bias at the FBI is exactly why many of us advocate for greater oversight of the FBI, especially since recently passed legislation leaves [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] Section 702 surveillance largely without checks and balances,” Paul said in his letter to Wray. “If openly biased agents such as Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page still have access to classified databases, one might argue that the FBI’s internal controls are inadequate.”
In addition to inquiring about Strzok and Page’s security clearances, as well as their access to the sensitive information, Paul asked the FBI director whether the bureau has procedures in place to examine database searches agents conduct, to make sure they’re not looking up information for “political or personal reasons.”
Strzok and Page have been under scrutiny after it was discovered they exchanged derogatory text messages about Trump. Strzok participated in the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server, as well as the bureau’s probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
But special counsel Robert Mueller removed Strzok from the Russia investigation after learning of the messages he and Page exchanged.
The text messages have raised questions among congressional Republicans as to whether an anti-Trump bias exists within the FBI.
The Department of Justice Inspector General is conducting its own investigation into the FBI’s handling of the Clinton investigation.
