Sen. Lindsey Graham, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has announced a procedure for the committee to authorize subpoenas for documents, information and testimony from Trump-Russia probe figures Peter Strzok, Bruce and Nellie Ohr, James Comey, James Baker, Lisa Page, John Podesta, Rod Rosenstein, Bill Priestap, Susan Rice, Christopher Wray, Sally Yates and others.
They are believed to have first-hand information about the FBI’s 2016 probe of the Trump campaign as well as special counsel Robert Mueller’s two-year investigation that concluded there wasn’t sufficient evidence of collusion.
Graham said Monday the committee will debate and vote on a subpoena authorization that focuses on the oversight of the Obama administration’s investigation, called Crossfire Hurricane, and the FBI’s abuse of the secret FISA court in its obtaining of warrants to spy on the Trump campaign.
Crossfire Hurricane is the focus of a criminal investigation by U.S. Attorney John Durham.
Graham said the vote on subpeona authorization is expected June 4.
The senator explained that under Senate Judiciary Committee rules, the chairman cannot by himself issue a subpoena. It requires the consent of the Republican-led committee’s top Democrat or a committee vote.
Graham said he would use the precedent set by Democrats in 2008 when they were in the majority and authorized subpoenas by party-line vote.
He’s seeking documents related to “any individual named or identified by pseudonym in the report titled ‘Review of Four FISA applications and Other Aspects of the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane Investigation’ issued by the U.S. Department of Justice Inspector General.”
The IG already has concluded Obama officials made 17 siginficiant errors or omissions in its applications for surrveillance warrants to the FISA court
Others who could be summoned include Trisha Anderson, Brian Auten, William Barr, Dana Boente, Jennifer Boone, Kevin Clinesmith, Patrick Conlon, Michael Dempsey, Stuart Evans, Tashina Gauhar, Carl Ghattas, Curtis Heide, Kathleen Kavalec, David Laufman, Stephen Laycock, Jacob Lew, Loretta Lynch, Mary McCord, Denis McDonough, Arthur McGlynn, Jonathan Moffa, Sally Moyer, Mike Neufield, Sean Newell, Victoria Nuland, Stephanie O’Sullivan, Joseph Pientka, Samantha Power, Sarah Raskin, Steve Ricchetti, Gabriel Sanz-Rexach, Nathan Sheets, Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, Glenn Simpson, Steve Somma, Michael Sussman, Adam Szubin and Jonathan Winer.
The Washington Examiner reported: “Facing growing pressure from the Right to make good on his pledge to subpoena officials who may have knowledge of the investigation’s origins, the senator has said timing is a factor. Graham noted earlier this month that he wanted to avoid ‘interfering in an ongoing criminal matter,’ referring to U.S. Attorney John Durham’s investigation of the Russia inquiry.”
The IG’s report last year criticized the FBI for its reliance on former British spy Christopher Steele’s salacious and now-debunked dossier.
Steele’s claims were created at the request of Fusion GPS, an opposition research firm hired by Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
Footnotes newly declassified by Barr and acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell show that the FBI was aware that Steele’s dossier might have been compromised by Russian disinformation.