Seething over Russia probe, Trump tears into ‘spygate’
President Donald Trump has branded his latest attempt to discredit the special counsel’s Russia investigation as “spygate,’’ part of a newly invigorated strategy embraced by his Republican colleagues to raise suspicions about the probe that has dogged his presidency almost since the start. Trump now is zeroing in on — and at times embellishing — reports that a longtime U.S. government informant approached members of his 2016 campaign during the presidential election in a possible bid to glean intelligence on Russian efforts to sway the election. Trump’s latest broadsides set the stage for an unusual decision by the White House to arrange access to classified documents for just two Republican House members, both Trump allies, in a briefing expected Thursday, as Trump and his supporters in Congress press for information on the outside informant.
It remains unclear what, if any, spying was done. The White House has given no evidence to support Trump’s claim that that the Obama administration was trying to spy on his 2016 campaign for political reasons.
It’s long been known that the FBI was looking into Russian meddling during the campaign and that part of that inquiry touched on the Trump campaign’s contacts with Russian figures. Trump has told confidants in recent days that the revelation of an informant was potential evidence that the upper echelon of federal law enforcement has conspired against him, according to three people familiar with his recent conversations but not authorized to discuss them publicly. Trump told one ally this week that he wanted “to brand’’ the informant a “spy,’’ believing the more nefarious term would resonate more in the media and with the public.
He went on to debut the term “Spygate’’ on Wednesday, despite its previous associations with a 2007 NFL scandal over videotaping coaches. Democrats say the briefing — held as special counsel Robert Mueller investigates Trump’s campaign and whether it was involved in Russian meddling in the U.S. election — is highly inappropriate and should be given to a bipartisan group of congressional leaders, as is customary. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi wrote to the Justice Department on Wednesday and said the GOP-only meeting is “completely improper in its proposed form and would set a damaging precedent for your institutions and the rule of law.’’
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said no Democrats were invited because they had not requested the information. In fact, Democrats have asked to be shown the classified material.