The Senate Intelligence committee’s leading Democrat issued a bold warning to President Trump on Thursday, telling acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe that if he faces any “political influence from the White House or others to squash” the agency’s investigation into Russian election meddling, he should let the committee know.
Speaking at a hearing on worldwide threats, Sen. Mark Warner’s opening remarks directly addressed the unfolding saga involving President Trump’s abrupt dismissal Tuesday of former FBI Director James Comey that left Washington reeling.
“It is impossible to ignore that one of the leaders of the intelligence community is not here with us today,” Mr. Warner said. “The president’s firing of FBI Director Comey Tuesday night was a shocking development.”
Mr. McCabe, who became acting FBI director after Mr. Comey’s firing, will testify Thursday before the committee. Other witnesses scheduled to speak before the committee include CIA Director Mike Pompeo, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats and NSA Director Adm. Michael Rogers.
Mr. Warner added that Mr. Comey’s dismissal made it hard to avoid the conclusion that Mr. Trump’s decision to remove Mr. Comey was related to the FBI’s ongoing Russia investigation.
Mr. Warner also reiterated calls from the Democratic party to appoint an independent special counsel “to get to bottom of what occurred during the 2016 U.S. presidential election.”
• Dan Boylan can be reached at dboylan@washingtontimes.com.
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