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Forty Members of Congress Tell Trump to Apologize to Obama Over Baseless Wiretapping Lies

March 27, 2017

Latest attempt to spin Trump’s claims detract from the real investigation into Russian Election Interference

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) led a letter with 39 Members of Congress to President Trump demanding he apologize for repeatedly spreading a lie that President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower. Last week, the Chair of the House Intel Committee, Rep. Devin Nunes, tried to spin Trump's widely debunked wiretapping claims by releasing new unconfirmed information to the press concerning surveillance of associates to Trump. Yesterday, in an interview on FOX News Sunday with White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, Chris Wallace asked if Trump was ready to apologize regarding his accusations of wiretapping.

The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board also didn't mince words when it said, President Trump is damaging the presidency "with his seemingly endless stream of exaggerations, evidence-free accusations, implausible denials and other falsehoods." In the interest of our national security and credibility as the leader of the free world, it is vital Trump is held accountable for these baseless accusations.

In the letter, the Members of Congress state:

"As this investigation continues, we urge you and your Administration to follow a simple rule: tell the truth. Further distracting the American people with inaccurate statements and attempts to deflect from the serious nature of this investigation are harmful to our national security and the integrity of this important investigation. We respectfully request you correct the record and offer an apology immediately."

The text of the letter is below and an electronic copy can be found here.

Dear President Trump:

We are writing to demand you apologize to President Obama for the recent false claims you made about the Obama Administration wiretapping Trump Tower.

During the House Intelligence Committee's public hearing regarding Russia's meddling in the 2016 presidential election, FBI Director James Comey confirmed that President Trump lied when he inappropriately used his Twitter account to accuse President Obama's administration of wiretapping Trump Tower. To quote FBI Director Comey, "I have no information to support those tweets, and we have looked carefully inside the FBI…"

FBI Director Comey also confirmed the disturbing revelation that there is an ongoing investigation into potential collusion between your 2016 campaign operatives and the Russian government. As this investigation continues, we urge you and your Administration to follow a simple rule: tell the truth. Further distracting the American people with inaccurate statements and attempts to deflect from the serious nature of this investigation are harmful to our national security and the integrity of this important investigation. We respectfully request you correct the record and offer an apology immediately.

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