Key aide to prosecutor reviewing origins of Trump-Russia probe resigns
Reuters
Published Sep 11, 2020 07:14PM ET
Updated Sep 12, 2020 04:45PM ET
(Reuters) - A senior aide to the Connecticut federal prosecutor in charge of investigating the origins of the FBI's probe into contacts between Donald Trump's 2016 campaign and Russia has resigned from the Justice Department, a spokesman for the prosecutor's office said.
Nora Dannehy, who had been working with Connecticut U.S. attorney John Durham on the investigation, has left the department, according to spokesman Tom Carson, who did not elaborate on the reason for her departure.
Earlier on Friday the Hartford Courant reported that Dannehy, an associate of Durham for decades, resigned in part over concerns the investigative team was being pressured to produce a report before its work was done for political reasons.
Durham recruited Dannehy to join his team after he was tapped by U.S. Attorney General William Barr last year to oversee the investigation, the Hartford Courant reported.
Barr has said he may seek to release some of Durham's findings before the Nov. 3 election, raising concerns among Democrats the move may be aimed at influencing voters in Trump's favor.
Democratic Representative Adam Schiff, the House Intelligence Committee chairman, said releasing findings before Nov. 3 would violate a Justice Department policy against making any moves that could impact an election.
"The Durham investigation was political from the start," Schiff wrote on Twitter after Dannehy's resignation was reported. "No wonder career prosecutors are resigning."
Last month former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith became the first person criminally charged as part of Durham's investigation, pleading guilty to falsifying an email used by the FBI in 2017 to renew its application for a secret wiretap to monitor former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz uncovered the doctored email and in December released a scathing report documenting 17 "basic and fundamental" errors and omissions in FBI surveillance warrant applications.
(reporting by Mark Hosenball in Washington and Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut; editing by Grant McCool) OLUSPOLITIC Reuters US Online Report Politics News 20200911T231329+0000
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.