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Ex-Dem lawmaker on GOP memo release: ‘Lock every single one of these bastards up’

by Morgan Gstalter - 02/02/18 4:07 PM ET

Former Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) on Friday accused GOP lawmakers of being “complicit” in efforts to obstruct justice after the House Intelligence Committee released a controversial memo alleging surveillance abuses by the FBI.

“The memo was released, contains nothing of substance, and Congressional Republicans are quite clearly complicit in this White House’s efforts to undermine and obstruct justice,” Dingell tweeted. “Lock every single one of these bastards up.”

The memo was released, contains nothing of substance, and Congressional Republicans are quite clearly complicit in this White House’s efforts to undermine and obstruct justice.

Lock every single one of these bastards up.

— John Dingell (@JohnDingell) February 2, 2018

GOP staff for House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) drafted the controversial memo, which President Trump declassified on Friday, allowing for it to be released publicly.

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Many House Republicans called for the memo to be released, pointing to its depiction of abuses by senior FBI and Department of Justice officials regarding improper surveillance of a Trump campaign associate. Some maintained it could hold the key to unraveling special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election meddling, including any possible links between President Trump’s campaign and Moscow.

Democrats and some Republicans vocally opposed releasing the memo, which was previously classified, and the FBI took the unusual step of releasing a public statement expressing “grave concerns” over inaccuracies in the memo.

Dingell, 91, retired from Congress in 2014 after 59 years. A frequent tweeter, he frequently goes after Trump and Republicans.

Dingell joked that, since the memo was released on Groundhog Day, he was “having trouble processing the fact I likely trust groundhog meteorologist more than the President and half of Congress.”

Having trouble processing the fact I likely trust a groundhog meteorologist more than the President and half of Congress.

— John Dingell (@JohnDingell) February 2, 2018

Dingell’s wife is Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), who won the race to replace him in Congress when he retired. Also a critic of Trump, she brought the wife of a deported man to Trump’s first State of the Union on Tuesday to protest his immigration policies.

Tags Debbie Dingell Devin Nunes Donald Trump John Dingell John Dingell; Debbie Dingell Michigan Robert Mueller Twitter