Officials Move to Open Inquiry on Trump's ‘Russia Hoax' Grievance
The Justice Department under Mr. Trump, reeling from the angry backlash over its handling of the Epstein case, is now taking its most concrete — if still murky — investigative steps against Trump targets, starting with officials he blames for what he sees as the plot against him: the investigation of his 2016 campaign's connections to Russia.
Attorney General Pam Bondi this week authorized prosecutors to investigate the inquiry the president calls the 'Russia hoax' and present a case to a grand jury in South Florida if the evidence warrants it, according to people briefed on the move who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing investigations.
Details are scant, including whether prosecutors have taken action. But Trump appointees are reluctant to present evidence to a grand jury in the District of Columbia where key decisions in the Russia investigation were made nearly a decade ago. They believe it would be nearly impossible to find sympathetic jurors in a courthouse overseen by a federal judge, James E. Boasberg, whom the Trump team regards as an enemy.
Fox News on Monday reported the existence of Ms. Bondi's order, which comes after a referral from Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence.
A Justice Department spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The decision to authorize a grand jury investigation, which could include subpoenas, into the statements and testimony by government officials surrounding the 2016 election suggests the Trump administration has begun turning its rhetoric of revenge into action. Still, there are a number of legal and practical hurdles that any such inquiry would have to overcome, chief among them the statute of limitations that would seemingly bar criminal charges based on conduct that is more than five years old.
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