Sen. Rand Paul escalated his demand for an investigation into former Obama officials who “concocted” the anti-Trump Russia scandal, revealing that former CIA Director John Brennan was the key figure who legitimized the charges and discredited “dossier” against the president.
In an interview, the Kentucky Republican said the Senate Judiciary Committee should immediately ask Brennan about his involvement in the document that helped to kick off the Russia collusion investigation of President Trump.
“I think we need to find the truth,” he told Washington Secrets. He said the goal would be to stop similar faulty investigations into future administrations, “Democratic or Republican.”
BREAKING: A high-level source tells me it was Brennan who insisted that the unverified and fake Steele dossier be included in the Intelligence Report... Brennan should be asked to testify under oath in Congress ASAP.
In a tweet, he said that he heard from a high level source that Brennan helped to validate the “dossier” in intelligence reports.
“A high-level source tells me it was Brennan who insisted that the unverified and fake Steele dossier be included in the Intelligence Report ... Brennan should be asked to testify under oath in Congress ASAP,” he tweeted.
In an earlier tweet Wednesday, Paul called for wide investigation into former President Barack Obama and his team. “Time for Congress to investigate. What did President Obama know and when? How did this hoax go on for so long unabated?”
In the interview, he also said he would ask Trump in a letter this week to declassify the information related to the distribution and use of the dossier.
I agree with @kimguilfoyle Time for Congress to investigate. What did President Obama know and when? How did this hoax go on for so long unabated?
Paul said the topic of a probe into the dossier “keeps coming up for discussion. How did all this get started.” He added that Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Lindsay Graham has indicated it would open a probe.
Brennan has denied in the past that he included the salacious dossier, generated at the request of the Democrats, in Intelligence Community Assessment reports on Russian interference in the 2016 election during the final months of the Obama administration. But at least two other top intelligence officials said he did.
And Washington Post editor Bob Woodward also said that Brennan endorsed the dossier from Christopher Steele when he got a copy in late 2016. Woodward said that Brennan felt it matched the Russia collusion charges he had heard.
The dossier was never considered true until it was recognized in intelligence assessments and only after the late Sen. John McCain and top Obama officials helped circulate it, said Paul.
Brennan has remained an anti-Trump public official. After assailing the president in the media, Trump withdrew Brennan’s security clearance.
The dossier was underwritten by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s campaign. By indicating the Kremlin interfered in the election, it helped to fuel false allegations of foreign collusion with the Trump campaign, leading to two years of nonstop investigations.
Just last week, special investigator Robert Mueller dismissed the collusion charges, giving the president a huge victory.
Time to investigate the Obama officials who concocted and spread the Russian conspiracy hoax!
After that, Paul first demanded that Democrats involved in pushing the Russia collusion story back in 2016.
“Time to investigate the Obama officials who concocted and spread the Russian conspiracy hoax!” he tweeted.
While he wants those who promoted the collusion story investigated, Paul is not calling for the appointment of a special prosecutor. He feels that Congress or Justice can investigate.
Trump campaign pollster John McLaughlin has also demanded a probe into the efforts by the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton campaign to spy on the Trump campaign.
“I’m very concerned that it’s becoming more clear that the Obama administration was able to obtain a FISA warrant to spy on our campaign based on phony opposition research from the Clinton campaign. Having federal law enforcement spy on a presidential campaign based on phony campaign research is really distressing and the true untold story,” he said.
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