President Donald Trump sought to have Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats and National Security Agency Director Adm. Michael Rogers publicly discredit the FBI’s investigation into Russian ties to his campaign by denying the existence of any evidence of collusion.
That's according to current and former intelligence officials who spoke to The Washington Post.
On March 20, former FBI Director James Comey confirmed under oath to the House Intelligence Committee that there was an ongoing FBI investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russian interests.
That, say intelligence officials, kicked off a series of attempts by Trump to have Coats and Rogers step forward to publicly undercut the investigation. Both believed the requests to be highly improper and did not cooperate, according to intelligence.
At least one of the conversations — with NSA Director Rogers — was documented in a memorandum retained by the NSA. The Washington Post reports that NSA officials are prepared to make it available to House and Senate committees investigating the issue as well as former FBI Director Robert Mueller's investigation.
This news comes on the same day that former White House National Security Advisor Michael Flynn invoked his Fifth Amendment rights by refusing to provide documents requested by the Senate Intelligence Committee.
When reached for comment, a White House spokesperson told The Washington Post, “The White House does not confirm or deny unsubstantiated claims based on illegal leaks from anonymous individuals.”
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