Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe has approved the release to the Department of Justice of a large binder full of documents to assist a review of the Obama administration’s handling of the Trump-Russia investigation, according to a source with direct knowledge of the materials and confirmed by Ratcliffe.
Why it matters: The release, which is being revealed publicly for the first time today, comes as President Trump is urging his agencies to expedite the release of materials that he believes will be politically advantageous to him.
The big picture: Trump’s allies have long claimed that Durham’s investigation will result in the indictments of top Obama administration officials. Thus far, Durham has netted a single guilty plea from a former FBI lawyer who admitted to altering an email used to help obtain a surveillance warrant on former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
- The timing and format of the findings from Durham’s investigation are not known, but Trump’s allies have pushed Barr to release some kind of report before the election.
- A career prosecutor abruptly resigned from Durham’s office last month, prompting Democrats to call for an “emergency” inspector general investigation into whether Barr is politicizing the probe to influence the election.