Thursday, August 3, 2017

We need a wolverine AG. Devin Nunes would be awesome. It's a time for American heroes to step up.



Who is Devin Nunes?


Mr Nunes is chairman of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, which is investigating Russia's interference in the 2016 election and possible ties between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign. It's a potentially sprawling enterprise that spans continents and plumbs spycraft.

A harsh critic of the Obama administration on issues like Benghazi, he went on to become a member of Mr Trump's transition team after the election and was reportedly instrumental in the selection of Gen. James Mattis for the role of Defence Secretary. 

In the past he has criticised those who would limit the scope of National Security Agency programs. 

"The intelligence committee - that's a committee that I call the tip of the spear, because without national security it's tough to keep those trade routes open," Nunes said in a 2014 interview with the Tulare Advance-Register.

Until now, much of Nunes' intelligence committee work has been focused on investigations into NSA leaker Edward Snowden, the Iran nuclear deal, Hillary Clinton's emails and the placement of a Defence Department intelligence center.

He has pledged to lead an impartial inquiry into Russia’s interference in the 2016 US election. But he has also been accused of using his position as chair of the intelligence committee in ways that seem aligned with the interests of the White House.

In February, the White House enlisted him to push back on a news article it didn't like about Trump associates' ties to Russia. The congressman has said he did nothing improper when he reached out to a reporter.

Nunes reveals surveillance of Trump

With his independence already under the microscope, Mr Nunes's actions in March have raised more questions about his ability to lead a credible investigation.

Mr Nunes told reporters that a secret source showed him intelligence reports that prove communications of the president's transition team were swept up in legal US surveillance activity.

They were not the targets of surveillance and were part of an "incidental collection". Mr Nunes said the intercepted communications were not related to an ongoing FBI investigation into suggestions of contacts between Trump associates and Russia.