GOP votes to give chairman authority to subpoena Obama officials

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted on Thursday to grant Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) broad subpoena authority as part of a probe stemming from the Obama administration.

In a party-line vote, Republicans on the panel gave Johnson the power to issue subpoenas for more than 35 individuals and a swath of documents, which will allow him to skip having to come back to the committee for a vote on each individual subpoena.

Johnson is conducting a wide-ranging investigation that includes reviewing "Crossfire Hurricane," the name for the FBI's investigation into election interference and the Trump campaign, the probe of former national security adviser Michael Flynn and leaks stemming from the early days of the Trump administration.

Johnson defended the investigation on Thursday, saying that "evidence is mounting" that there was not a "peaceful and cooperative" transition between the Obama and Trump administrations.

"The conduct we know that occurred during the transition should concern everyone and absolutely warrants further investigation. .. The subpoena authority I am requesting today will help us gather the necessary information. Hopefully, the agencies and individuals will fully cooperate, and the number of subpoenas required will be limited," he added....(Read more)

Latest News