Nunes: Criminal Referrals of Obama-era Officials Implicated in Debunked Russia Probe Could Come By Week's End

By Sarah Lee | 5:36 PM on April 01, 2019

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FILE - In this Sept. 4, 2013, file photo, then-incoming FBI Director James Comey talks with outgoing FBI Director Robert Mueller before Comey was officially sworn in at the Justice Department in Washington. On May 17, 2017, the Justice Department said it is appointing Mueller as special counsel to oversee investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

On Oct. 28, 2013, President Barack Obama and James Comey participate in the installation ceremony for Mr. Comey as FBI director at the bureau’s Washington headquarters. PHOTO: CHARLES DHARAPAK/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) told Fox News Anchor Harris Faulkner Monday that he is calling for full transparency of the Mueller report and still plans on making criminal referrals by week’s end into whether or not Obama-era intelligence officials engaged in a partisan attempt to unseat President Trump.

“We now know for sure that they used the counter intelligence services to target a political campaign,” Nunes told Faulkner. “They told that us it happened in late July of 2016. We believe it happened much earlier than that. So it’s not a matter of politics here. This is a matter of whether or not people broke the law; whether or not they actually lied to the FISA court; whether or not they didn’t give congress all the information [and] obstructed justice; whether or not they leaked classified info. So look, these people need to be held accountable and we will make our criminal referral and we’ll see what the Department of Justice does with it.”

Nunes has been teasing for months that Republicans in the House would seek criminal referrals, insinuating last week, following the release of the Mueller report synopsis, that those referrals could come as soon as this week.

Faulker said while introducing the congressman that House Republicans are specifically interested in talking to former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director James Comey, former Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page.

Nunes also said he was interested in seeing not just Mueller’s full report — acknowledging that it will legally need to be redacted — but the underlying documents that led to the opening of the investigation into possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign.

“How exactly did Mueller’s team create this report?,” Nunes asked.

“I think full transparency is in order,” Nunes continued, “And I want to make sure that everyone understands what full transparency means.”

Full interview below.