Wave of subpoenas unleashed as Trump DOJ launches attack on 2016 Russia probe
President Donald Trump's Department of Justice has sent out a new wave of subpoenas related to the FBI's investigation of Trump's ties to the Russian government in 2016, according to a new report.
This marks the second time the administration has sought to re-litigate the 2016 Russia investigation in the court of public opinion. Last November, the administration subpoenaed former members of the U.S. intelligence community over their actions during the Russia investigation. The new round of subpoenas seeks information about the intelligence community's actions in compiling an intelligence assessment of the election, The Associated Press reported.
"The subpoenas represent continued investigative activity in one of several criminal inquiries the Justice Department has undertaken into Trump’s political opponents," according to the report. "An array of former intelligence and law enforcement officials have received subpoenas, and lawyers for former CIA Director John Brennan, who helped oversee the drafting of the assessment, have said they have been informed he is a target but have not been told of any 'legally justifiable basis for undertaking this investigation.'"
Trump's DOJ is also seeking to change the narrative about the 2020 general election. Last month, Trump's FBI and the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, raided the election office in Fulton County, Georgia, and retrieved roughly 700 boxes of materials related to the 2020 election, including the county's voter rolls and hard copies of the ballots.
Elections experts have warned that the administration could use the data to meddle in future elections.