FBI Director Asks Justice Department to Refute Trump's Claims of Wiretapping: Reports
FBI Director James Comey has asked the Department of Justice to publicly reject Donald Trump’s claims that former President Obama wiretapped his phones at Trump Tower before the election.
Trump took to Twitter Saturday morning inside his Mar-a-Lago estate and unloaded on his predecessor, saying that he learned Obama had Trump Tower in New York City wiretapped prior to the election.
Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my "wires tapped" in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
Is it legal for a sitting President to be "wire tapping" a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
I'd bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to Election!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
How low has President Obama gone to tapp my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
According to reports, Comey was concerned about the tweets and believed they were inaccurate.
Since the tweets, neither the FBI nor the Department of Justice has publicly commented on the matter.
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Taking to Twitter Sunday, Press Secretary Sean Spicer said, "Reports concerning potentially politically-motivated investigations are very troubling." It was the first in a series of tweets about the subject.
(1/4) Reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling.
— Sean Spicer (@PressSec) March 5, 2017
(2/4) President Trump is requesting that as part of their investigation into Russian activity, the congressional intelligence committees
— Sean Spicer (@PressSec) March 5, 2017
(3/4) exercise their oversight authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.
— Sean Spicer (@PressSec) March 5, 2017
(4/4) Neither the White House nor the President will comment further until such oversight is conducted.
— Sean Spicer (@PressSec) March 5, 2017
An Obama spokesperson denied the 44th president's involvement in any wiretapping, saying: "A cardinal rule of the Obama administration was that no White House official ever interfered with any independent investigation led by the Department of Justice.
"As part of that practice, neither President Obama nor any White House official ever ordered surveillance on any U.S. citizen. Any suggestion otherwise is simply false."
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