Adam Schiff says House Intelligence Committee is rushing to end Russia investigation

Adam Schiff, a ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, has expressed concern about the rushed pace of the investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election, reports The Hill.

“I’m increasingly worried Republicans will shut down the House Intelligence Committee investigation at the end of the month,” Schiff wrote in a string of tweets on Friday. “Since March, our investigation has made important progress. We’ve interviewed numerous key witnesses behind closed doors, held public hearings, reviewed thousands of documents, identified new leads — all to understand and expose Russia’s meddling and protect our democracy.”

Schiff goes on to mention the lack of scheduled activity towards the end of this month and beyond.

“Republicans have scheduled no witnesses after next Friday and none in 2018. We have dozens of outstanding witnesses on key aspects of our investigation that they refuse to contact and many document requests they continue to sit on,” he noted. “It appears Republicans want to conduct just enough interviews to give the impression of a serious investigation.”

The New York Times reports some witness interviews are on the schedule for next week but they will be held in New York, “possibly leaving Democrats to choose between attending those depositions or voting on the massive tax bill coming before the House.”

Schiff is pointing the finger at House Speaker Paul Ryan.

“The responsibility to conduct a thorough investigation, or to prevent one, ultimately falls on @SpeakerRyan. I’m concerned he’s heeding the calls of Bannon and @POTUS to ‘DO SOMETHING’ by closing down the Russia investigation & opening up another investigation of Hilary Clinton,” the Democrat tweeted.

Ryan’s spokesperson has pushed back on the claims that the investigation is being rushed.

“The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence is conducting a thorough and professional investigation into Russian meddling and is following the facts wherever they may lead,” AshLee Strong said.

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