Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski will return to Capitol Hill on Thursday for a second closed-door interview with the House Intelligence Committee looking into Russia’s election meddling as well as allegations of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia, according to sources familiar with the scheduled appearance.
However, at this point, the committee is divided as to whether it should continue with the investigation, ABC News writes.
“We’re at the point where there’s really not much more that we can ask,” Republican Representative Chris Stewart, a member of the committee, said. “We feel we have an obligation to report at least what we know now.”
Democrats, on the other hand, believe there is still to be learned from key players in the Trump campaign.
Lewandowski served as President Donald Trump’s first campaign manager but was fired in June of 2016. Since then, he has remained close to the president and members of his administration, serving as an outside adviser to Trump.
“Even if he didn’t work in the White House, we need to know everything he knows about events that occurred during the administration, such as the Comey firing, the letter that was written to cover up the [Trump Tower] meeting and other events,” Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro, said.
The former campaign manager was first interviewed in January but declined to talk about his activities and communications with the president after being fired from the campaign. According to the top Democrat on the committee, Adam Schiff, Lewandowski also refused to say whether he had spoken to Trump prior to his interview to discuss his scheduled testimony.
Only days before Lewandowski’s refusal to testify, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon had also refused to discuss his work for Trump during the transition and in the West Wing, invoking executive privilege. White House communications director Hope Hicks appeared before the committee last week and did not answer some questions about the Trump administration and her time in the West Wing.
Ahead of Lewandowski’s appearance, Republicans on the committee have indicated the Russia probe may be coming to an end, while findings and security recommendations will soon be released.
“We’re closer to the end than the beginning,” Representative Mike Conaway, a member of the House Intelligence Committee who is leading the probe, said Wednesday.
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