Congressional Russia committees going nowhere
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Senate Intel Chair Richard Burr and Vice Chair Mark Warner. Photo: J. Scott Applewhite / AP
"All three committees looking into Russian interference — one in the House, two in the Senate — have run into problems, from insufficient staffing to fights over when the committees should wrap up their investigations," the N.Y. Times' Nicholas Fandos writes on A1.
Why it matters: "Nine months into the Trump administration, any notion that Capitol Hill would provide a comprehensive, authoritative and bipartisan accounting of the extraordinary efforts of a hostile power to disrupt American democracy appears to be dwindling."
More from the Hill:
- A "political morass ... is crippling the House Intelligence Committee's investigation."
- "The Senate Judiciary Committee's inquiry has barely started, delayed in part by negotiations over the scope of the investigation.
- "Leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, while maintaining bipartisan comity, have sought to tamp down expectations about what they might find."
Be smart: Mueller was always going to be the last word. Turns out he may have the only definitive word.
Rising on the right: Trump said during a press avail last week: "Your real Russia story is uranium and how they got all of that uranium -- a vast percentage of what we have. That is, to me, one of the big stories of the decade."
- Trump added in an interview with Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo that aired yesterday, declaring "zero collusion": "I will say this, the uranium situation with Russia getting uranium, they better look into that. That is looking like a very serious situation."
- The backstory: "The Senate Judiciary Committee [chaired by Sen. Chuck Grassley] has launched an investigation into a Russian nuclear bribery case ... During his 2016 campaign, Trump frequently cited the deal for the uranium ... and has returned to the issue at rallies during his presidency."
