Olsen calls Trump civil-rights grand jury inquiry ‘far-reaching’
Former CIA Director John Brennan’s attorney disclosed in a sworn court filing Monday that his client is the “target” of a separate federal probe into whether he lied to Congress during testimony as part of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The filing was entered in connection with a lawsuit Brennan brought against the Trump administration in July.
In the sworn statement, filed Monday and reviewed by United Press International, attorney Kenneth L. Wainstein said he and Brennan spoke by phone with another federal prosecutor working on the case, Kurt Olsen, who told them Brennan was a “subject” in the government’s South Florida investigation. The “subject” designation, attributed to Olsen, pertained to the South Florida inquiry. The “target” characterization, attributed to Wainstein, concerned the separate federal probe into whether he lied to Congress during testimony as part of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
“In that call, Mr. Olsen fielded our inquiries and indicated there are multiple ‘viable’ grand jury investigations, including a ‘far-reaching’ investigation in Fort Pierce that includes ‘issues at Mar-a-Lago and beyond’ into whether President Trump had his civil rights violated,” according to the filing.
Separately, Wainstein said in the filing that Brennan — who served as CIA director under former President Barack Obama — is the “target” of a separate probe into whether he lied to Congress during testimony as part of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Brennan has denied any wrongdoing.
The filing was entered as part of a lawsuit in which Brennan’s lawyers ask a federal court to preserve all records related to the administration’s investigation of him. The preserved documents, the lawsuit argues, could be used in defense arguments that the investigation — and any possible prosecution — of Brennan are part of Trump’s attempt to “vindictively punish” the former CIA director.
In the lawsuit, Brennan’s lawyers wrote that “administration officials from the acting attorney general to the FBI director and the counselor overseeing the Brennan investigations have been publicly declaring Director Brennan a criminal, not only before securing a conviction in court but even before a full investigation and indictment.” The filing also alleged that “certain officials in the Department of Justice are engaging in demonstrably irregular prosecutorial activity in order to gin up a case that will satisfy the president’s direction.”
Brennan was subpoenaed Thursday to testify next month before a grand jury in Fort Pierce, Florida, as part of the Justice Department investigation, which is based out of the U.S. attorney’s office in South Florida. The subpoena was issued the same day the federal prosecutor handling the case, Joe diGenova, abruptly resigned. DiGenova signed the subpoena before his departure, according to court records.
The Washington Post reported that DiGenova had been in a dispute with Justice Department officials over the pace of his investigation, and unnamed sources confirmed the reason for his departure to CBS News. DiGenova did not offer an explanation for his resignation.
DiGenova had taken over the case in April and promised to file charges within 30 days after the previous lead, Maria Meditis Long, was fired. The South Florida-based investigation is examining what Trump supporters have called “the grand conspiracy” — a federal effort that has investigated Trump and others he has identified as his political opponents throughout his political career, including Brennan.