A Justice Department investigation into former US officials involved in probes targeting US President Donald Trump has been hit by a new road block after Joseph diGenova, the prosecutor brought in to lead the investigation, resigned following a clash with Attorney General Todd Blanche.According to a report by CNN, diGenova resigned a day after a tense phone call with Blanche. The immediate dispute centred on diGenova’s attempt to prevent lawyers sent by the Justice Department headquarters from assisting his South Florida-based investigation. The disagreement came against the backdrop of other tensions surrounding how quickly the probe was progressing.The resignation is significant because the investigation is one of the Trump administration’s major efforts to examine whether government officials improperly targeted the president through investigations carried out over the past decade.
What is the investigation about?
The probe initially focused heavily on former CIA director John Brennan, whom the Justice Department has sought to prosecute for allegedly making false statements to Congress. Brennan has been a longstanding target of Trump’s criticism.But after diGenova took over the investigation in April, its scope widened considerably. His team began examining potential criminal conduct involving a broader group of Trump’s political critics and former government officials connected to investigations into Trump.The inquiry, as envisioned by diGenova, stretches back to the FBI’s 2016 investigation into Russian interference in the US presidential election and extends through investigations surrounding the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot and the classified-documents case involving Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.Critics have questioned how events dating back roughly a decade could form the basis for criminal charges today, while also raising questions about the connection between some of the conduct under examination and South Florida, where a grand jury has been sitting.
Why did diGenova resign?
The immediate break appears to have been over control of the investigation.Justice Department headquarters had sent additional lawyers to assist the team. DiGenova sought to block them from participating, CNN reported, triggering the final confrontation with Blanche.There had also been disagreements over resources and security arrangements. DiGenova requested that a highly secure room known as a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) be built at the team’s Fort Pierce office so that highly classified material could be handled there. Justice Department officials instead told the team to use an existing SCIF at an FBI office several miles away. DiGenova had also sought additional lawyers for his team, although Justice officials disputed claims that he had been denied adequate resources.The Justice Department had also been expecting criminal charges to emerge earlier this year. More recently, officials had anticipated that the first charges could come as soon as September, CNN reported.DiGenova, however, defended his slower, evidence-first approach. After his resignation, he told CNN that, as a prosecutor of more than 50 years, he made cases through “witnesses, evidence, etc.” and that such investigations take time.Despite the internal dispute, the investigation had become more active in recent weeks.CNN reported that investigators had issued a series of subpoenas seeking documents and grand jury testimony. On the day diGenova resigned, investigators were presenting a witness before a grand jury in the case.Brennan’s lawyers said in a court filing that he received a subpoena requiring him to testify before a grand jury in Fort Pierce in October. They also said a prosecutor working on the case told his team that Brennan remained a target in the narrower investigation into alleged false statements.DiGenova’s team has contacted former FBI and intelligence officials who had knowledge of the bureau’s 2016 Russia investigation. Among those subpoenaed were former FBI lawyer Lisa Page and lawyer Dan Richman, who was a close contact of former FBI director James Comey during the period when the Russia investigation was active. A former supervisor in the FBI’s Russia investigation was also interviewed for several hours after receiving immunity from prosecutors, CNN reported.The witnesses and subjects being approached show how far the inquiry has moved from its original focus on Brennan. Investigators have examined issues surrounding the intelligence community’s assessment of Russian interference in the 2016 election, Brennan’s leadership and even aspects of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and public perceptions of Trump’s relationship with Russia — subjects that have long angered Trump.
What happens now?
DiGenova’s resignation could further delay an investigation that has already moved beyond the timeline originally expected by Justice Department officials.The department, however, does not appear to regard his departure as a setback. A US law enforcement official told CNN that Justice officials remain confident in the investigative team and expect the inquiry to regain momentum.And the investigation itself is continuing. A day after diGenova’s resignation, Justice Department lawyers told Brennan’s attorneys that there were multiple grand jury investigations as well as a “far-reaching” investigation in Fort Pierce examining issues connected to Mar-a-Lago and beyond, including whether Trump’s civil rights had been violated, according to a court filing.The resignation, therefore, does not signal the end of Trump’s effort to revisit investigations involving him.
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