Former FBI Director James Comey could have to return before Congress, as The Hill reports several leaders on the Senate Judiciary Committee are considering issuing him a subpoena.
Former FBI Director James Comey could have to return before Congress, as The Hill reports several leaders on the Senate Judiciary Committee are considering issuing him a subpoena.
The committee’s ranking member Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said she and chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, had discussed the idea of compelling Comey to testify before them.
« He asked me and I said I would, » she told the Hill Thursday. When asked if there was a timeline, she added that Grassley is « the chairman; he’ll make that decision. »
Despite this, a spokesman for Grassley said after Comey testified Thursday that « no specific decisions on issuing subpoenas have been made at this time, » according to the Hill.
« Sen. Grassley is willing to consider issuing subpoenas in the course of the Judiciary Committee’s ongoing and bipartisan oversight, » the spokesman added. « He’ll need to work toward an agreement with the ranking member on which types of subpoenas they might issue to which recipients and in what order. That all depends on the course of the investigation. »
In a press release Thursday, Grassley said that « Comey’s testimony today left many questions unanswered and even raised some new questions about the decisions he’s made in the course of handling politically-charged investigations. »
He continued, « The Judiciary Committee will continue its review of decisions made by the Justice Department and FBI in the course of these investigations. These actions will also be important as the Committee prepares to consider the nomination of the next FBI Director. The American people deserve a full accounting of attempts to meddle in our democratic process and assurances the Justice Department and FBI are operating without political influence from both within or outside the agencies. »
