Republican Senator Rand Paul has sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray on Tuesday asking him to reveal what security clearances FBI agent Peter Strzok and FBI lawyer Lisa Page have at the moment and if they continue to receive access to classified materials or databases.
“In light of recent reports describing Peter Strzok and Lisa Page’s extensive discussion, at work, of their political vendetta against President Donald Trump, I am concerned about their continued access to sensitive private information, such as that contained in Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) databases,” Paul wrote.
Paul who is a known privacy hawk expressed deep concerns that the two FBI officials may abuse access to such information especially with the databases of the nation’s recently reauthorized controversial U.S. surveillance programs.
“Do Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page still have security clearances? Do Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page have the ability to search FISA data or other classified databases?” he asked Wray.
Previously, special counsel Robert Mueller removed Strzok and Page the Russia probe last year after an investigation showed that both FBI officials have sent texts messages to each criticizing Trump during the election.
The Senator along with several Republican lawmakers say that these reports reveal a political bias against the president within the top levels government agencies.
“The exposure of political bias at the FBI is exactly why many of us advocate for greater oversight of the FBI, especially since recently passed legislation leaves FISA Section 702 surveillance largely without checks and balances,” Paul wrote.
According to The Hill, Some GOP lawmakers have particularly honed in on the fact that the two agents not only served on Mueller’s probe looking into whether Trump campaign aides colluded with the Kremlin but also were involved in the federal investigation into whether Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information with an email server as Secretary of State.
“If openly biased agents such as Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page still have access to classified databases, one might argue that the FBI’s internal controls are inadequate,” Paul concluded.
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