READ IT HERE: Controversial GOP Memo On Russia Probe Released
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- House Republicans on Friday released a partisan and bitterly disputed memo that they say shows surveillance abuses in the early stages of the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign and Russia.
The memo, prepared by Republicans on the House intelligence committee, says there was "a troubling breakdown of legal processes" in the Russia investigation.
President Donald Trump, who advocated for the memo's release over the fierce objections of the Justice Department and the FBI, told reporters the document shows "a lot of people should be ashamed of themselves."
The document, with the subject line: "Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Abuses at the Department of Justice and the FBI," alleges those agencies obtained multiple warrants to track Trump campaign official Carter Page, based on a dossier compiled by a former British spy paid by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's campaign.
WEB EXTRA: Read the memo (.pdf)
"I think it's terrible," Trump said. "You want to know the truth. I think it's a disgrace. What's going on in this country, I think it's a disgrace."
"To my knowledge, this is the first time in American history that the Justice Department and FBI have been weaponized through the actions of a political party," Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, said.
The memo, which the FBI has said is inaccurate and missing critical context, asserts that current and former FBI and Justice Department leaders signed off on a surveillance warrant to monitor communications of the former Trump campaign associate.
The document also asserts that opposition research, conducted by a British spy and funded in part by the Democratic National Committee and Clinton campaign, formed a critical basis for the allegations contained in the warrant application.
Republicans say that research should not have been a basis for the warrant, because it contains unproven allegations.
"Director Wray's real objection here is that the Nunes memo is a one-sided advocacy piece," CBS News senior national security analyst Fran Townshend reported. "No FISA warrant is on a single piece of information.
"You would have informants, you might have had other physical surveillance, you might have had other electronic surveillance, you might have info from foreign intelligence services," she continued. "So it's a mosaic."
The release of the memo is likely to further divide Trump and his FBI and Justice Department leaders, and the president lashed out anew on Friday morning on Twitter. He has supported the memo release in apparent hopes that it could help undermine the probe being led by special counsel Robert Mueller, which he has called a "witch hunt."
"The top Leadership and Investigators of the FBI and the Justice Department have politicized the sacred investigative process in favor of Democrats and against Republicans - something which would have been unthinkable just a short time ago. Rank & File are great people!" Trump tweeted.
The tweet came as U.S. news coverage was dominated by reports that the FBI and the Justice Department had objected strenuously to the memo's release. Earlier this week, the FBI declared it had "grave concerns" about its accuracy.
Trump's tweet and his approval of the memo release set up a clash with the man he picked to lead the FBI, Christopher Wray, after firing James Comey as agency director. It also seemed at odds with House Speaker Paul Ryan who said a day earlier "this memo is not an indictment of the FBI or the Department of Justice."
Democrats say the memo cherry-picks intelligence in an effort to smear law enforcement investigating whether Trump associates collaborated with Russia to sway the 2016 presidential election.
"This is designed to impugn the credibility of the FBI, to undermine the investigation, to give the president additional fodder to attack the investigation. And it's a tremendous disservice to the American people," Rep. Adam Schiff, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said on CBS "This Morning."
The document was written by GOP lawmakers as part of an effort to reveal what Republicans say are surveillance abuses by the FBI and the Justice Department early in Russia investigation, before special counsel Robert Mueller was appointed to take it over.
Senior FBI officials, including Wray, have also made direct appeals to the White House, warning that it could set a dangerous precedent.
Democrats on the intelligence panel made a last-ditch effort Wednesday evening to stop the release, saying the memo had been "secretly altered" by the Republicans who wrote it. In a letter to the House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, Schiff wrote that committee Democrats had discovered changes that were made after the vote Monday.
"The White House has therefore been reviewing a document since Monday night that the committee never approved for public release," Schiff said in the letter.
Schiff asked Nunes for another vote on the memo, but Republicans didn't appear to waver. Nunes spokesman Jack Langer said the committee vote was "procedurally sound."
This all comes as special counsel Mueller is investigating whether the Trump campaign improperly coordinated with Russia and whether Trump sought to obstruct the inquiry by, among other actions, firing Comey. Republicans have intensified their pressure on the Justice Department as Mueller's probe has moved closer to Trump's inner circle.
Trump has been telling confidants in recent days that he believes the document will validate his concerns that the FBI and Justice Department conspired against him, according to one outside adviser familiar with those conversations but not authorized to speak publicly about private discussions.
The president also has told allies that he believes the memo bolsters his claim that accusations of collusion between his campaign and Russian officials are false and part of a conspiracy to discredit his election.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer pressed Ryan to stop the release.
Democrats say if Trump uses the memo to fire Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, it could lead to a constitutional crisis.
Schumer called the memo "partisan and misleading, simple as that. To use it as a pretext for firing Deputy AG Rosenstein, Special Counsel Mueller or other DOJ leadership would be viewed as an attempt to obstruct justice in the Russia investigation."
The president was asked if he would fire Rosenstein.
"You figure that one out," he replied.
Arizona Sen. John McCain said the criticism of the FBI and DOJ serves "no American interests - no party's, no president's, only Putin's."
"This is such an awful partisan moment that seems to be about so much more than the FBI, it seems to be about trying to undermine an ongoing investigation of the president of the United States," New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker said. "This to me just smacks of people that are trying to undermine an investigation under actions that we know have taken place and that have already led to indictments."
New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell also questioned GOP motives.
"It is inept, it is a plague on the republic, it is the worst thing that could have happened," he said.
Comey reacted to the release of the memo calling it "dishonest and misleading," adding that it "destroyed trust with intelligence community, damaged relationship with FISA court, and inexcusably exposed classified investigation of an American citizen."
Democrats have a counter memo they want released, Brennan reported. The White House indicated administration officials would be willing to work with Congress to make that happen.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
