Johnson subpoenas FBI in review of Russia probe origin

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Sen. Johnson subpoenas FBI in review of Russia probe origin

The Senate Homeland Security Committee subpoenas the FBI and Director Christopher Wray; former Trump Deputy National Security Secretary KT McFarland reacts on 'America's Newsroom.'

The Senate Homeland Security Committee on Monday subpoenaed the FBI and Director Christopher Wray as part of its broad review into the origins of the Russia investigation, Fox News has learned.

Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., issued the first subpoena as part of the panel's review to Wray.

The subpoena, obtained by Fox News, demands that he produce "all records related to the Crossfire Hurricane investigation."

"This includes, but is not limited to, all records provided or made available to the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Justice for its review," the subpoena states, referring to DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz's review of abuses related to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

The subpoena also demands "all records related to requests" to the General Services Administration or the Office of the Inspector General for the GSA for "presidential transition records from November 2016 through December 2017."

The FBI must provide these documents to the committee by Aug. 20 at 5 p.m. ET, according to the subpoena.

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In a statement to Fox News, an FBI spokesperson confirmed that "the FBI has received Chairman Johnson’s August 6th subpoena."

"The FBI has already been producing documents and information to the Senate Homeland Security Committee, which are directly responsive to this subpoena," the FBI said in a statement. "As always, the FBI will continue to cooperate with the Committee’s requests, consistent with our law enforcement and national security obligations."

The subpoena is directed to the "Federal Bureau of Investigation c/o (care of) Christopher Wray."

An FBI official told Fox News on Monday that the bureau has already been producing documents to the committee on a "rolling basis and have surged resources to do so."

In June, the committee voted to authorize subpoenas to the FBI and other agencies for records and testimony from Obama-era officials related to the bureau's original Russia investigation and the Justice Department inspector general's review of that probe.

The committee authorized subpoenas to the FBI for the production of all records related to the Crossfire Hurricane Investigation — the bureau's internal code name for the Russia probe, which began in July 2016.

The subpoenas would cover all records made available to DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz for his review of the Russia probe and alleged misconduct surrounding the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant approvals to surveil members of the Trump campaign.

The committee also authorized subpoenas to the State Department for the production of records related to meetings or communications between State Department officials or employees with ex-British Intelligence officer Christopher Steele, who compiled the now-infamous anti-Trump dossier which served as much of the basis for the FISA warrant applications to surveil former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. The subpoenas would cover documents from June 2016 through January 2017.

The committee also authorized subpoenas to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the production of all records related to the process of “unmasking” U.S. persons or entities affiliated "formally or informally" with the Trump campaign, the Trump transition team or the Trump administration from June 2015 through January 2017.

Johnson has the ability to issue subpoenas to a number of officials, including former FBI Counsel James Baker, former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director James Comey, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former Obama chief of staff Denis McDonough, former FBI lawyer Lisa Page, former FBI agent Peter Strzok, Joe Pientka, former White House National Security Adviser Susan Rice, former FBI director of counterintelligence Bill Priestap, former U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, Sidney Blumenthal, and a number of other Obama-era officials.

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Also part of the committee’s probe is the process of “unmasking,” which occurs after U.S. citizens' conversations are incidentally picked up in conversations with foreign officials who are being monitored by the intelligence community. The U.S. citizens' identities are supposed to be protected if their participation is incidental and no wrongdoing is suspected. However, officials can determine the U.S. citizens' names through a process that is supposed to safeguard their rights.

In May, Johnson and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, made public a list of Obama officials who purportedly requested to “unmask” the identity of Michael Flynn, who at the time was President Trump’s incoming national security adviser.