Key GOP chairman anticipates 'very thorough' IG report will shed light on 'unbelievable bias' in DOJ, FBI
A top Republican in the House is eagerly awaiting for the Justice Department watchdog to confirm his belief that laws were broken by employees of the DOJ and FBI.
With the release of the highly-anticipated inspector general report from Michael Horowitz about the DOJ and FBI’s handling of the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s email server coming on June 14, House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte said Sunday he expects it to be "very thorough."
The Virginia Republican emphasized on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo" that the report will "shed a lot of light" on the "unbelievable bias" demonstrated by leaders in the nation's top in the nation's premier law enforcement organization in handling the Clinton investigation versus the investigation looking into whether there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Asked if he believed laws were broken, Goodlatte answered in the affirmative.
"I do believe laws have been broken," he said, citing former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, who in a DOJ IG report in April was found to have “lacked candor” on four separate occasions, three of which were while he was under oath. The IG sent a criminal referral about McCabe to federal prosecutor in D.C. based on the findings in its report.
Goodlatte expressed his hope that the forthcoming IG report will uncover more details about Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, the FBI officials who came under fire after it was revealed they exchanged text messages critical of President Trump -- a matter which the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees have examined. Both Strzok and Page were part of the Clinton emails investigation and later were assigned to special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation.
The report "may make it clear whether of not criminal laws have been violated," Goodlatte said.
Goodlatte stressed that there already have been some examples of accountability put into action, demonstrated by the removal of McCabe and ex-Director James Comey from the FBI. Further action, he said, will be in the hands of U.S. Attorney John Huber, who was been appointed by FBI Director Chris Wray to investigate GOP claims of FBI misconduct.
"He does have prosecutorial authority," Goodlatte said of Huber, adding that "the Inspector general can make referrals for prosecutions. So, if there is evidence of criminal wrongdoing ... we will see that happen."
Following the release of the IG report, the House Judiciary and Oversight committees will hold a joint hearing on “Oversight of the FBI and DOJ Actions in Advance of the 2016 Election" on June 19, the testimony in whcih Goodlatte said will be split into classified and public settings. Horowitz is expected to testify a day earlier on his report before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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