Trump calls on Congress to investigate Obama
WASHINGTON — In the murky world of intelligence there are many shades of grey, but in this case the denial could hardly have been more emphatic. Barack Obama’s director of national intelligence was crystal clear that the FBI had never been given a secret court order to carry out electronic surveillance at Trump Tower in New York.
“Absolutely, I can deny it,” James Clapper said. “Something like this? Absolutely I would know.”
The interviewer on NBC News spluttered, surprised that such a serious allegation by the president of the United States had been so categorically shot down. Just to make sure, he asked again.
“No,” Clapper replied firmly. “There was no such wiretap activity mounted against the president, the president-elect at the time, as a candidate or against his campaign.”
And that, one would have thought, would be that. But in Donald Trump’s Washington, it was not.
Sunday, he called on Congress to investigate whether Obama had abused his powers by obtaining the alleged secret court order.
He instructed his White House counsel, Donald McGahn, to pursue any information relating to secret court orders involving him and his election campaign.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the White House wants the congressional committees to “exercise their oversight authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.”
He said there would be no further comment until the investigations are completed, a statement that House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi likened to autocratic behaviour.