Justice Department to probe secret subpoena for Schiff’s records on Trump’s watch
WASHINGTON — The
Justice Department’s internal watchdog announced Friday it was launching an investigation into federal prosecutors’ use of secret subpoenas to obtain records from Apple concerning two California lawmakers on the House Intelligence Committee, their staff and family members.
The move came as top Democratic senators called on the Justice Department’s inspector general to launch such a probe and for former President Donald Trump’s attorneys general to testify before Congress about why prosecutors took such an aggressive investigative step.
The Democrats allege that the subpoenas of records related to Reps. Adam Schiff, D-calif., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, and Eric Swalwell, D-calif., were further evidence that the Trump administration engaged in abuses of power when targeting its political foes. The lawmakers targeted by the subpoenas, which were part of an investigation into the leak of classified material, are Democrats known for their vocal criticism of the Trump administration.
“The revelation that the Trump Justice Department secretly subpoenaed metadata of House Intelligence Committee Members and staff and their families, including a minor, is shocking,” according to a statement from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the chairman of the chamber’s Judiciary Committee. “This appalling politicization of the Department of Justice by Donald Trump and his sycophants must be investigated immediately by both the DOJ Inspector General and Congress.”
The announcement of an investigation by the Justice Department’s inspector general came a day after news broke that that the Justice Department had sought information from Apple about a dozen people: the lawmakers, relatives, including a minor, and staffers. Schiff and Swalwell, the latter of whom serves on the panel, learned about the subpoenas last month from Apple, a committee official said.
The official said 10 others were also told by Apple their records had been turned over to the Justice Department. A federal grand jury issued the subpoenas in February 2018, and Apple reached out to the lawmakers last month only after a judicial gag order had expired, people familiar with the matter said.
The subpoenas, the people said, had been issued as part of investigations by the Justice Department into leaks of classified information, a preoccupation of Trump, who often railed about such disclosures, which were not uncommon in his administration. The Justice Department declined to comment on the subpoenas, or disclose what material it obtained.
Prosecutors use such subpoenas to gather information about when, where and whom people communicated with, but not the underlying messages themselves.
The subpoenas bore little fruit, the people said. The Justice Department told the committee that the investigation had been concluded and no charges were being brought, the committee official said. The official added that lawmakers were irked that they learned about legal action from Apple in “pro forma” emails and not the Justice Department.
The grand jury action occurred when former Attorney General Jeff Sessions was running the Justice Department, apparently as part of his campaign to clamp down on leaking. In an August 2017 news conference, Sessions highlighted the department’s zealous approach to investigating leakers, saying it had tripled the number of leak investigations since he had taken office in early February. “We are taking a stand,” he said. “This culture of leaking must stop.”
Sessions could not be reached for comment. A person close to Sessions said the former attorney general was not aware the subpoenas had been issued. His deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Former Attorney General William Barr, who took office in February 2019, said in an interview he was not aware of the subpoenas or the congressional leak investigation. “I don’t recall that particular case,” Barr said in an interview. “The subpoena was sought before I arrived.”
It was not clear when the Senate Judiciary Committee would hold hearings on the matter. Investigations by the inspector general can take years to complete.
P