WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released the following statement on Friday after Republicans in Congress released a partisan memo drafted by Republican House Intelligence Committee staff in an attempt to discredit the FBI and the investigation into Russian interference in U.S. elections. 

“This memo seems to do more to confirm the legitimacy of the FBI investigation into the Trump campaign than to undermine it. Most importantly, the memo confirms that the counterintelligence investigation began with George Papadopoulous well before the FISA warrant was granted on Carter Page, who has been under FBI investigation since 2013 when the Russians attempted to recruit him as a spy. And the memo does not call into question the two guilty pleas for lying to the FBI and pending charges of conspiracy against the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering that have already emerged from the investigation,” said Murphy. “It is clear from this memo that Chairman Nunes is serving up garbage evidence to provide cover for the president to fire either Robert Mueller or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in order to scuttle the investigation before it reaches the truth. Americans deserve the full story, not a partisan witch hunt.” 

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