WASHINGTON: The House intelligence committee is asking the Trump administration for evidence that the phones at Trump Tower were tapped during the campaign as its namesake has charged, a request reinforced Sunday by an influential Republican senator who says the president must either come up with the evidence or retract his claim.
鈥淚 think the president has one of two choices: either retract or to provide the information that the American people deserve, because, if his predecessor violated the law, President Obama violated the law, we have got a serious issue here, to say the least,鈥� Sen. John McCain said.
President Donald Trump asserted in a tweet last week: 鈥淭errible! Just found out that Obama had my 鈥榳ires tapped鈥� in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!鈥� He continued the allegation against former President Barack Obama in other tweets but offered no evidence.
The request for evidence by Monday was made in a letter sent to the Justice Department by the House committee chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and the panel鈥檚 ranking Democrat, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a senior congressional aide said Saturday. The aide wasn鈥檛 authorized to discuss the request by name and requested anonymity.
Obama鈥檚 director of national intelligence, James Clapper, has said that nothing matching Trump鈥檚 claims had taken place, but that has not quelled speculation that Trump鈥檚 communications were monitored by the Obama administration. Trump has asked Congress to investigate.
Early this past week, Schiff said the committee would answer the president鈥檚 call to investigate the claim. He also said he would ask FBI Director James Comey directly when he appears later this month before the full committee, which is investigating Russian activities during the election.
On Sunday, Schiff said he doubted there was any evidence of wiretapping, but that Comey and others called to testify at the upcoming hearing 鈥渨ould be in a position to have to know.鈥�
鈥淚 think on March 20 if not before we鈥檒l be able to put this to rest,鈥� Schiff told George Stephanopoulos on ABC鈥檚 鈥淭his Week.鈥� 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think anyone has any question about this, George. The only question is why the president would make up such a thing.鈥�
McCain said Trump could 鈥渃lear this up in a minute鈥� if he were to call 鈥渢he director of the CIA, director of national intelligence and say, 鈥極K, what happened?鈥欌€�
The president has an obligation to provide evidence that Obama broke the law or retract his claim, the Arizona Republican said.
鈥淚 do believe on issues such as this, accusing a former president of the United States of something which is not only illegal, but just unheard of, that requires corroboration. I鈥檒l let the American people be the judge, but this is serious stuff,鈥� McCain said on CNN鈥檚 鈥淪tate of the Union.鈥�
Kellyanne Conway, a counselor to the president, said Sunday on Fox News Channel鈥檚 鈥淢ediaBuzz that the House and Senate intelligence committees have agreed to investigate and 鈥渨e鈥檒l make a comment after those findings are complete.鈥�
Nunes has said that so far he has not seen any evidence to back up Trump鈥檚 claim and has suggested the news media were taking the president鈥檚 weekend tweets too literally.
鈥淭he president is a neophyte to politics 鈥� he鈥檚 been doing this a little over a year,鈥� Nunes told reporters this past week.
Other lawmakers also have asked for evidence.
Declaring that Congress 鈥渕ust get to the bottom鈥� of Trump鈥檚 claim, Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., asked Comey and Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente to produce the paper trail created when the Justice Department鈥檚 criminal division secures warrants for wiretaps.