Goodlatte and Gowdy Send Letter Outlining Joint Investigation

WASHINGTON, DC – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-SC) sent a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Inspector General Michael Horowitz, and Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker outlining the Committees’ joint investigation into decisions made by the Department of Justice in 2016 and 2017. The letter sent to Majority Leader McConnell, Mr. Horowitz, and Mr. Whitaker can be found HERE. Excerpts from the letter:“During our joint investigation, House investigators reviewed thousands of documents and conducted transcribed interviews of investigative and prosecutorial decision-makers at the FBI, DOJ, and elsewhere.  Those interviews revealed troubling facts which exacerbated our initial questions and concerns.  Some of these concerns are set forth below.”“Each of these concerns is but an illustration of our larger objective, which is a fair, even-handed, objective review of the decisions made and not made in 2016 and 2017 so public confidence can be restored or enhanced in institutions we rely so heavily upon.  Contrary to Democrat and media claims, there has been no effort to discredit the work of the Special Counsel.  Quite the opposite, whatever product is produced by the Special Counsel must be trusted by Americans and that requires asking tough but fair questions about investigative techniques both employed and not employed.”“Our Committees have assiduously avoided interfering with any ongoing criminal, counter-intelligence, administrative, or judicial reviews of conduct engaged in 2016 or 2017.  Nevertheless, confidence in venerable institutions like the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation must be restored so the public can trust these institutions to make decisions solely on the facts and the law and totally devoid of political bias or consideration.”The letter sent to Mr. Whitaker and Mr. Wray regarding transcripts of the interviews can be found HERE.Background: In October 2017, the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee opened a joint investigation into decisions made by the Justice Department in 2016 and 2017. To date, the Committees have interviewed 19 key witnesses and have reviewed thousands of pages of documents.

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