Fractious House panel at centre of latest Trump probes
WASHINGTON — The oversight committee chosen by House Speaker Paul Ryan to investigate whether President Donald Trump obstructed an FBI probe has been the most publicly aggressive group involved in the cautious, GOP-led investigations.
But the fate of its investigation hinges on Ryan’s lukewarm support and the sometimes fractious working relationship between its Republican and Democratic leaders.
Ryan said Wednesday the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will take the lead scrutinizing reports that Trump pressed FBI Director James Comey to shut down the bureau’s investigation into Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn. Hours after Ryan’s announcement, the committee’s chairman, Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, tweeted that he has already scheduled a public hearing for next week into the matter and will ask Comey to testify.
Chaffetz’s move came a day after he wrote the FBI demanding memos and notes that Comey reportedly compiled after several meetings and phone calls with Trump. “If this memo exists, I need to see it right away,” Chaffetz told The Associated Press in a phone interview, adding, “If we need a subpoena, we’ll do it.”