GOP rep who recused himself from Russia probe now running his own secret investigation

A group of House Republican lawmakers, led by disgraced Rep. Devin Nunes, has been secretly investigating the Justice Department and the FBI for weeks in an attempt to discredit and ultimately undermine the findings of the ongoing Russia investigation, according to an explosive new report.

The group, composed of a subset of Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee, has been quietly working and holding private meetings without the knowledge of their Democratic colleagues. The goal of the secret investigation is to “highlight what some committee Republicans see as corruption and conspiracy in the upper ranks of federal law enforcement,” Politico reported Wednesday night.

The group’s work is reportedly the product of a plan devised by Nunes, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. He was forced to step down from his work on the Russia probe in April amid an ethics investigation into whether he disclosed classified information in an attempt to provide cover for Trump’s lie about being wiretapped by President Barack Obama.

It’s long been known that Nunes never really stepped aside from the investigation, but the new report shows that his ongoing involvement in the Russia probe is much more extensive — and far more concerning — than previously reported.

According to Politico, the secret group led by Nunes plans to release a report early next year detailing their claims of corruption and anti-Trump bias at the FBI and DOJ.

“That final product could ultimately be used by Republicans to discredit special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into whether any Trump aides colluded with Russia during the 2016 campaign — or possibly even to justify his dismissal, as some rank-and-file Republicans and Trump allies have demanded,” Politico reports.

Nunes and the other members of his secret group claim that the FBI and DOJ conspired to hurt Trump and/or help his former opponent, Hillary Clinton — a baseless accusation that has also been embraced by Trump and his allies in the White House and the media.

They are focusing their investigation on the funding for the so-called “Steele Dossier,” which was compiled by a former British intelligence agent during the 2016 campaign. The dossier outlines an alleged conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia to influence the presidential election.

Nunes and colleagues claim that the dossier influenced the FBI’s decision to initiate the investigation into Trump’s ties to Russia, but there is no evidence to support that accusation.

Other lawmakers in the Nunes-led group refused to comment about the secret meetings, but did not deny the existence of the group.