First Chamber member Ron Johnson, R-Wis., Takes warmth from Democrats to say that his investigation into the conduct and conduct of intelligence agencies under the Obama administration would help President Trump win re-election in November.
“Ron Johnson has just explicitly acknowledged that he is separating the resources of the First Commission on Homeland Security and Government Affairs from overseeing the failed response of coronavirus so that he can instead give weapons to taxpayer money to, in his own words,” Donald Trump help win re-election, ” Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s campaign response director Andrew Bates told Fox News.
JOHNSON SET SUBPOENAS ‘FORTHCOMING’ IN RUSSIA WITHOUT DESPITE PRIOR PUSHBACK OF COLLEAGUES
Bates responded to comments made in a radio interview by Johnson on Tuesday about the Senate First Security Committee’s investigation into the Russia investigation.
“The more we expose the corruption of the transition process between Obama and Trump, the more we expose the corruption within those agencies, I would think it would certainly help Donald Trump win reelection and certainly would be pretty good, I would say, evidence about not voting for Vice President Biden, “Johnson said in the radio interview.
The commission, chaired by Johnson, is investigating the origins of the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election – specifically the decisions that led to a warning from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) about Trump officials -campaign.
In a telephone interview with Fox News on Thursday, Johnson said the commission is “absolutely” considering sending out statements to top Obama officials, such as former FBI Director James Comey and former National Intelligence Director James Clapper, but that the commission is busy with a “thought process.”
The commission also investigated Biden’s actions in relation to Ukraine, specifically its role in the 2014 fire of a prosecutor who had previously investigated Burisma Holdings – an energy company where Biden’s son Hunter was sitting on the board.
JOHNSON SUBPOENAS FBI IN REVIEW OF RUSSIA PROBE ORIGINS
Johnson said in another radio interview, first reported by Politico, that the evidence his commission had uncovered was so “scandalous” that “it should completely disqualify Biden from being president.”
On Wednesday, he told FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo, when asked about U.S. Attorney John Durham’s investigation into the Russian probe, that “unfortunately the wheels of justice are turning.”
“But we need to make it faster, because we’ve got an election, and people have the right to know before they cast their ballots,” he said.
The Biden campaign accused Johnson of trying to resist a “widely rejected right-wing conspiracy theory” and of allowing taxpayer money to be taxed to help Trump win re-election.
“This devastating acknowledgment fully demonstrates that Ron Johnson’s shameful behavior is the definition of malfeasance,” Bates told Fox News. “It is high time for him to end this embarrassing and deeply unethical quarrel once and for all – as some of his Republican colleagues in the First Chamber have long wanted.”
Johnson told Fox News on Thursday that some Republicans were “very concerned” about what the investigation and issuance of statements would look like “politics” – but said his colleagues did not block statements.
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“It simply came to our notice then. “Members of my committee had legitimate concerns, and I’m not critical of them,” Johnson said. “We have addressed the concerns, we reject the motion requests, and I agree to do as much as possible to obtain testimony on a voluntary basis.”
Johnson’s commission this week presented FBI Director Christoper Wray as part of the review of the Russia investigation, and requested all records related to the initial Crossfire Hurricane investigation including records related to the president’s transition.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
