Tag Archives: wiretaps

The New York Times reports: President Trump cut short an interview with the host of “Face the Nation” on CBS after being asked about his unsubstantiated claim that President Barack Obama wiretapped his campaign, saying he was entitled to his own “opinions.” Mr. Trump, speaking during a prerecorded interview in the Oval Office with John Dickerson that was broadcast on …

CNN reports: After a review of the same intelligence reports brought to light by House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers and aides have so far found no evidence that Obama administration officials did anything unusual or illegal, multiple sources in both parties tell CNN. Their private assessment contradicts President Donald Trump’s allegations that former Obama national …

CNN reports: It has been something of a mystery, the whereabouts of House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes on the day before his announcement that he saw information suggesting that communications of then-President-elect Donald Trump and his advisers may have been swept up in surveillance of other foreign nationals. One source told CNN that Nunes, a California Republican, was …

Raw Story reports: CNN’s Jake Tapper on Wednesday hammered Republican House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes over his assertion there may have been “incidental collection” of President Donald Trump during the transition. “You said he could have been, but I don’t know what that means,” Tapper began in a lengthy and contentious interview, pointing out that the incidental collection of communications …

The Washington Post reports: Fox News has reportedly pulled legal analyst Andrew Napolitano from the air over his baseless claim, repeated by President Trump, that British intelligence officials spied on Trump at the request of President Barack Obama. Napolitano, a regular face on Fox News, has not appeared on the network since Thursday and will not be a guest in …

Raw Story reports: CNN’s Wolf Blitzer said that Comey’s testimony before the House Intelligence Committee was a disaster for Trump, whom he said now faces a major problem with credibility. “This is another embarrassment right now to the president,” Blitzer said. “What he alleged 16 days ago, the FBI and the Justice Department say they have no evidence to back …

The Hill reports: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Monday that President Trump must apologize for “disgraceful and incendiary” claims former President Barack Obama wiretapped him last year. Pelosi said in a statement that FBI Director James Comey’s testimony earlier in the day “put the last nail into President Trump’s mendacious wiretapping claims.” “President Trump owes President Obama and …

Considering what’s happened to so far today, THIS should be entertaining. The Associated Press reports: Mike Rogers, the director of the National Security Agency, is denying that the British intelligence community was ever asked to conduct electronic surveillance on President Donald Trump at the behest of former President Barack Obama. Earlier this month, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer referred …

UPDATE: Bumping this post back to the top as things begin. The hearing starts at 10AM but I’m posting the live-stream early as a heads-up. The Associated Press reports: A hearing Monday before the House Intelligence Committee, one of several congressional panels probing allegations of Russian meddling, could allow for the greatest public accounting to date of investigations that have …

The Huffington Post reports: The chairman of the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday announced that evidence provided by President Donald Trump’s administration does not prove his unsubstantiated claim that his predecessor Barack Obama ordered wiretapping on Trump Tower during last year’s campaign. “Was there a physical wiretap of Trump Tower? No, there never was,” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) said on …

“In a fevered effort to try and force this outlandish claim into something remotely resembling––passably, perhaps, maybe––the truth, the White House appears willing to actually repeat another wild accusation that potentially could alienate our nation’s most important ally. Does smearing British intelligence make your family more safe? No? So why is the White House doing it? What is the White …

The New York Times reports: President Trump refused to back down on Friday after his White House aired an unverified claim that Britain’s spy agency secretly monitored him during last year’s campaign at the behest of President Barack Obama, fueling a rare rupture between the United States and its most important international partner. Although his aides in private conversations since …

USA Today reports: Britain’s intelligence agency called allegations that it wiretapped President Trump during the U.S. election campaign, “utterly ridiculous” claims “that should be ignored.” The statement by the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), which hardly ever responds to allegations about its spying activities, came after White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer repeated a claim first made on Fox News in …

Patch.com reports: White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer arrived more than an hour late to his scheduled press briefing on Thursday and got into a tense argument with two reporters right out of the gate over President Trump’s claims that President Obama “wiretapped” Trump Tower. As soon as Spicer began taking questions, he was asked about the Senate Intelligence Committee’s …

The Hill reports: Former President Barack Obama’s chief of staff on Thursday pushed back against President Trump’s wiretapping allegations. “The president cannot order a wiretap, president does not order a wiretap, the president did not order a wiretap,” Denis McDonough said on CBS “This Morning” when asked if the president can order a wiretap. On Wednesday, Trump defended his unsubstantiated …

Reuters reports: President Donald Trump suggested more information would be coming out soon about his claim that former President Barack Obama ordered a wiretap of Trump Tower during the 2016 presidential campaign. “I think you’re going to find some very interesting items coming to the forefront over the next two weeks,” Trump said about the wiretap claim in excerpts of …

NPR reports: House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes says he doesn’t believe “there was an actual tap of Trump Tower,” contrary to claims made by President Trump. The top Democrat on the House committee, Adam Schiff, said he has seen “no evidence whatsoever” that supports Trump’s claim. Trump alleged that his predecessor, President Barack Obama, tapped his phone at Trump …

NBC News reports: A spokesman for the Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee has asked the Justice Department to provide any evidence of the president’s wiretapping claims before a March 20 hearing, and warned it could use a “compulsory process” if it doesn’t get answers. House Intelligence Committee Republicans spokesman Jack Langer made the statement Monday night after the Justice Department asked …

Raw Story reports: White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer suggested that President Donald Trump did not actually mean wiretapping when he accused President Barack Obama of “wiretapping” him in a recent tweet. “I think if you look at the president’s tweet, he said very clearly — quote — wiretapping in quotes,” Spicer said, incorrectly adding that there had been “substantial …

The North Jersey Record reports: The White House is offering yet another wrinkle in its attempt to support President Donald Trump’s allegation — unfounded, so far — that his campaign headquarters in Manhattan was wiretapped by the Obama administration. The latest comes from Trump’s senior counselor Kellyanne Conway. She says the “surveillance” may be broader than even Trump suggested. In …