FBI analyzed phone records of senators as part of Trump Jan. 6 probe, lawmakers say
WASHINGTON AP The FBI in analyzed phone records of more than a half dozen Republican lawmakers as part of an scrutiny into efforts by President Donald Trump to overturn the results of the balloting according to information issued Monday by GOP senators The records enabled investigators to see basic information about the date and time of the calls but not the content of the communications the senators commented The records encompassed several days during the week of Jan when pro-Trump rioters stormed the U S Capitol in a bid to halt the certification of the voting process results The disclosure adds new detail to the since-shuttered inquiry by the FBI and former special counsel Jack Smith into the moves Trump and allies took in the run-up to the Capitol riot to undo his electoral contest loss to Democrat Joe Biden Trump was indicted in August on charges of conspiring to overturn the results but the matter was abandoned after Trump s win the following year in light of a Justice Department legal opinion that says sitting presidents cannot face federal prosecution The subpoena for the phone records was disclosed by several Republican senators including Chuck Grassley of Iowa who chairs the Judiciary Committee that oversees the FBI Grassley mentioned the document memorializing the preliminary toll analysis was produced in response to his request The investigative step was authorized by a grand jury the senators commented Grassley called it a violation of personal property and people s rights and the law and their constitutional rights That document was dated Sept and lists the following Republican lawmakers as people whose records were apparently scrutinized Sen Lindsey Graham of South Carolina Sen Bill Hagerty of Tennessee Sen Josh Hawley of Missouri Sen Dan Sullivan of Alaska Sen Tommy Tuberville of Alabama Sen Ron Johnson of Wisconsin Sen Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming Sen Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Rep Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania The document indicated that the analysis was conducted by an FBI special agent whose name was redacted and that it was authorized by supervisory agents It does not say how or why those lawmakers were identified or whether any meaningful tips or leads emerged from that investigative work Greater part of the lawmakers were part of a group of Republicans who planned to challenge the results of the presidential electoral process After the voting was disrupted by the rioters on Jan specific voted to certify the results while others still voted against certification The senators disclosed they would not be conducting their own analysis because they expected FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino both Trump loyalists to review the matter Grassley suggested that more people at the FBI would be fired over the inquiry saying If heads don t roll in this town nothing changes Senate Majority Leader John Thune reported on social media that he had grave concerns about the matter I fully encouragement Senate committees getting to the bottom of this outrageous abuse of power and weaponization of the governing body declared Thune a South Dakota Republican Source
