FBI Director James Comey’s acknowledgment of an investigation into allegations of campaign-era cooperation between President Trump’s associates and Russian officials did not provide any new information about Russian activities, a senior administration official said on Monday.
“Nothing has changed,” the official said shortly after Comey testified before the House Intelligence Committee on Monday morning.
“Senior Obama intelligence officials have gone on record to confirm there is NO EVIDENCE of Trump-Russia collusion and there is NO EVIDENCE of a Trump-Russia scandal,” the official wrote in an email. “Obama’s CIA director said so. Obama’s Director of National Intelligence said so. We take them at their word.”
James Clapper, former national intelligence director, said earlier this month that he was not aware of any evidence to support claims that Trump’s campaign aides colluded with Russian officials to leak Democratic emails during the presidential race.
Michael Morell, a former acting CIA director who endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, said last week that he has seen no evidence of Russian collusion.
Comey confirmed, in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee on Monday, the existence of an investigation into the allegations against Trump’s campaign associates. During that hearing, Comey also said his agents had uncovered no evidence to support Trump’s claim that Barack Obama wiretapped his communications at the height of the presidential race.
Democrats have repeatedly called for an independent counsel to oversee any investigation into the Trump campaign’s connections to Russia. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has already recused himself from any matter related to the Trump campaign, citing his involvement with it as a surrogate.
