Here’s What’s Happening With the Democratic Memo and the Trump-Schiff Feud
Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Politics News Adam Schiff
Donald Trump attacked House Intelligence Committee member Adam Schiff on Twitter today, calling him “one of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington.”
Schiff (D-CA), aka “Little Adam Schiff,” per Trump, is expected to release a Democratic rebuttal to the controversial Devin Nunes memo that was released last week and was questioned for its accuracy by the FBI.
Little Adam Schiff, who is desperate to run for higher office, is one of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington, right up there with Comey, Warner, Brennan and Clapper! Adam leaves closed committee hearings to illegally leak confidential information. Must be stopped!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2018
The Devin Nunes memo was released in an effort to discredit the FBI’s investigation into Trump’s Russia ties, and it alleged that the FBI was involved in illegal surveillance of Trump staffers during the 2016 presidential campaign.
The four-page, classified Nunes memo was released after Trump ignored the FBI’s recommendation that the memo not be released. Last week, Schiff alleged that the memo was altered by Nunes after the committee approved it and was then sent to the White House.
Schiff also fired back against Trump’s tweet today, calling it a “false smear” and suggesting Trump should “help solve the funding crisis, protect Dreamers or … really anything else.”
Mr. President, I see you’ve had a busy morning of “Executive Time.” Instead of tweeting false smears, the American people would appreciate it if you turned off the TV and helped solve the funding crisis, protected Dreamers or…really anything else. https://t.co/lVqQRu2Gjl
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) February 5, 2018
In regards to the Democratic rebuttal memo, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee voted against releasing it last week and instead chose to publish their own four-page memo. Several of those Republicans and House speaker Paul Ryan say they now favor releasing the Democratic memo, as long as it does not include sensitive national security information.
Democrats say their own 10-page memo fixes misleading information put forth by Republicans and adds context to actions by the FBI and the Justice Department in obtaining a secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court order to wiretap the former Trump aide, Carter Page.
According to The NYT, a White House official said on Sunday that they were open to releasing the Democratic memo as long as intelligence sources and methods were protected as with the Republican memo.
This Democratic memo will also supposedly contest that the FBI was not only justified in its use of surveillance against the Trump campaign, but demonstrated transparency when including information from Christopher Steele in the warrant application partially financed by the DNC and lawyers for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
It is also said to shoot down Republican claims that Andrew G. McCabe, then deputy director of the FBI, told the Intelligence Committee last year that the agency would not wiretap Carter Page without Steele’s dossier of information.