Claims presidential campaign was spied on

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Twitter yesterday that it was looking more and more likely that his campaign for the 2016 presidential election had been illegally spied upon.

Trump issued the tweet after saying documents about his former campaign adviser Carter Page confirmed that the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation had misled the courts.

The FBI released documents on Saturday related to the surveillance of Page as part of an investigation into whether he conspired with the Russian government to undermine the election. Page has denied being an agent of the Russian government and has not been charged with any crime.

“Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC (stet),” he said, referring to the Democratic National Committee. “Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam!”

The 412 pages, mostly heavily redacted, included surveillance applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and warrants surrounding the investigation into Page. The documents released include applications and renewal warrants filed last year after Trump took office.

The documents said “the FBI believes that the Russian government’s efforts are being co-ordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with” the Trump’s campaign. It added that Page had “established relationships with Russian government officials, including Russian intelligence officers”.

Republican lawmakers have contended that the FBI made serious missteps when it sought a warrant to monitor Page after he left the Trump campaign.