The White House has asked the US Congress to investigate alleged abuse of executive power by the Obama administration as part of the investigation into alleged Russian interference in the presidential election.
The White House request released on Sunday was directed to “congressional intelligence committees” and required them to “exercise their oversight authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.”
The statement added that no further comments on the issue would come from either the White House or the president.
The request comes a day after US President Donald Trump accused his predecessor of ordering the wiretapping of his phones during the election campaign.
READ MORE: ‘Simply false’: Obama denies Trump allegations of WH wire tapping at Trump Tower
The accusation apparently refers to the reported surveillance of two Russian banks authorized by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court as part of the investigation of the alleged Russian meddling. The initial FBI request specifically targeted four members of the Trump campaign but was rejected by the FISC, so the agency filed a new request that targeted the banks instead.
James Clapper, who served as director of national intelligence in the Obama administration, reiterated the rejection of the wiretapping allegations on Sunday.
“There was no such wiretap activity mounted against the president, the president-elect at the time, as a candidate or against his campaign,” he told NBC's Meet the Press, after the White House statement was released.
Clapper added that as intelligence director, he would have known about a “FISA court order on something like this. Absolutely, I can deny it.”
Trump’s alleged Russian connection, which the president denies, is a recurring accusation of his critics. General Michael Flynn was forced to resign less than a month after being appointed national security adviser due to his contacts with the Russian ambassador in Washington. Attorney General Jeff Sessions is currently under attack for failing to mention his meetings with the Russian ambassador during his confirmation hearing.