On Saturday, President Donald J. Trump went on a tweetstorm that accused former President Barack Obama of wiretapping him at the Trump Tower during the 2016 election. On Sunday, President Trump’s White House requested that the Congress open an investigation into whether the Obama administration abused their wiretap powers during the 2016 campaign. This investigation would be part of the ongoing congressional probe into Russia’s influence on the election. Thus far, Trump nor the White House has supplied evidence of the wiretapping, but there have been reports circulating since November.
President Trump began his Sunday morning with a fresh new tweets that went after Democratic National Committee and Obama.
Is it true the DNC would not allow the FBI access to check server or other equipment after learning it was hacked? Can that be possible?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 5, 2017
Who was it that secretly said to Russian President, "Tell Vladimir that after the election I'll have more flexibility?" @foxandfriends
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 5, 2017
President Trump’s reference to Obama is the moment back in March of 2012 at a nuclear disarmament summit in Seoul where President Obama was caught on a hot mic talking to Russian President (at the time) Dimitri Medvedev. “This is my last election,” Obama told Medvedev. “After my election I have more flexibility.” “I understand,” Medvedev replies. “I will transmit this information to Vladimir.”
Then the White House called for an investigation of the Obama administration. A statement from the office of White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was released, but said administration officials would have no further comment on the issue until Congress has completed its probe.
White House issues statement on Trump claim of Obama wiretap, demands probe pic.twitter.com/YS8SzWNdeU
— Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) March 5, 2017
“Reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling,” the statement says. “President Donald J. Trump is requesting that as part of their investigation into Russian activity, the congressional intelligence committees exercise their oversight authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.”
Obama’s spokesman has denied that President Obama abused his executive powers in connection with the 2016 presidential election and called the accusations “simply false.”
[AP]