House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA) has requested that the intelligence community keep him appraised of Attorney General Bill Barr’s efforts to probe the beginnings of the Russia probe.
In letters to the heads of the CIA, FBI, the National Security Agency and the Office of Director of National Intelligence, Schiff expressed concerns that Barr was seeking to “politicize” the intelligence community (IC), and could make “inappropriate and misleading disclosures of classified information and IC sources and methods for political ends.”
He is requesting that the agencies provide for the committee a briefing on what they’ve heard about the Barr’s review so far, that they turn over to the committee any materials they provide Barr, and that they inform the committee of moves by Barr to declassify those materials as well as any objections the agencies have to the declassification.
The letter was first reported by CNN.
Last week, President Trump issued a directive that ordered the intelligence community to cooperate with Barr’s review and that gave Barr unilateral authority to declassify any information he obtained.
“In the wake of the directive, the Committee will conduct rigorous, ongoing oversight of your agency and others in the IC to ensure that the Attorney General does not abuse his new and sweeping authority,” the letter from Schiff said. “Congress, and this Committee, must serve as a check on this abuse of power to ensure that the IC can fulfill its lawful mission and law enforcement can conduct appropriately predicated investigations of powerful government officials without fear of retribution.”
Read Schiff’s letter below:
