The Justice Department and FBI will be offering an additional briefing early next week to members of the “Gang of Eight” who were briefed last month on classified intelligence information related to the Russia investigation, the Washington Examiner has learned.
According to a senior Justice Department official, the Gang of Eight will allowed to review new documents that were not provided during the original May 24 briefing.
The briefing is to answer certain questions that have been raised by both House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and other members, the official said.
“The Department and FBI believes it can provide information that is directly responsive to congressional inquiries in a manner that is consistent with its national security and law enforcement responsibilities, and is pleased to do so,” said the senior Justice Department official.
The briefing is expected Monday or Tuesday, depending on lawmakers’ schedules.
The Justice Department official noted that some of the documents to be allowed for review were already made available, “but not inspected by the members at the previous briefing along with some additional material.”
The information was originally sought by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and pertains to classified documents and information about the Russia investigation.
President Trump has alleged that the Obama administration sent a “spy” — i.e. confidential informant — to infiltrate his campaign during the 2016 election, and dubbed it “spygate.”
After a contentious back-and-forth that included Trump-allied lawmakers threatening to hold Rosenstein in contempt, the White House announced Chief of Staff John Kelly would organize a briefing to go over the documents sought by Nunes and Gowdy.
Nunes and Gowdy were part of both May 24 briefings — the first which took place early afternoon at the Justice Department with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats. House Speaker Paul Ryan also attended the first meeting because of a scheduling conflict.
Nunes and Gowdy then joined in on the second briefing with the same officials and the Gang of Eight members on Capitol Hill later that afternoon.
At the conclusion of both briefings, top Democrats announced there is “no evidence” of a spy in the 2016 Trump campaign.
“Nothing we heard today has changed our view that there is no evidence to support any allegation that the FBI or any intelligence agency placed a spy in the Trump campaign or otherwise failed to show appropriate procedures and protocols,” House Intelligence Committee ranking member Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Senate Intelligence Committee ranking member Mark Warner, D-Va., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a joint statement.
Schiff, like Nunes and Gowdy, was also allowed in both briefings.
Republican lawmakers have, in recent days, issued statements backing Democrats.
Gowdy said last week that he was not presented with any evidence in that original May 24 briefing of spying on the Trump campaign, and he believes the FBI did “exactly” what it should have done by using a confidential informant.
Ryan told reporters on Wednesday at a news conference that he agreed with Gowdy’s initial assessment, “but we have some more digging to do. We’re waiting for some more document requests.”
“As Chairman Nunes said just the other day, if we got all the information we’re looking for, we could wrap this up faster. But I have seen no evidence to the contrary of the initial assessment that Chairman Gowdy has made,” he said. “But I want to make sure that we run every lead down and make sure we get final answers to these questions.”
“I think that Trey Gowdy’s description of the process was correct,” said Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., also on Wednesday.
The Gang of Eight are the Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, as well as chairman and ranking member of both the House and Senate Intelligence committees.
