Senate Republicans demand DOJ watchdog produce records of FBI Trump investigation review

A pair of Senate Republicans are demanding that the Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General hand over unredacted records of its review of the FBI's investigation of the 2016 Trump campaign.

GOP Sens. Chuck Grassley, Iowa, and Ron Johnson, Wisc., on Tuesday wrote to Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz asking that he provide them with unredacted versions of materials that his office released to Citizens United in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

"The records contained in the DOJ OIG’s February 3, 2023, FOIA production to Citizens United directly relate to our ongoing efforts to expose corruption within the FBI," the pair wrote. "Therefore, we respectfully request that you produce the unredacted version of those records... by no later than May 9, 2023."

The lawmakers observe that the DOJ IG released 460 pages of materials to Citizen United, but contended that "[d]ue to massive redactions applied to the interview transcripts by a number of agencies, including the DOJ OIG, these records are impossible to review."

Specifically, Grassley and Johnson identified transcribed interviews with Kathleen Kavalec, Lisa Page, Loretta Lynch, and Nellie Ohr as pertinent materials among those they requested. Each was a key player in the investigation.

"For years we have examined the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation as well as the DOJ OIG’s report on the matter," they continued. "We understand that the DOJ OIG 'conducted over 170 interviews involving more than 100 witnesses' related to DOJ OIG’s report on Crossfire Hurricane."

The lawmakers specifically seek the number of transcribed interviews and information on if any were not transcribed. They also requested that Horowitz disclose any federal agencies with which the DOJ IG shared the materials in preparation of the FOIA request from Citizens United and inquired as to whether special counsel John Durham every requested records of transcripts from him.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.